An Accident In Time: Aincrad
by Festus Flare
Summary: I always hear stories about the death game mama and papa cleared some thirty years back. So when an accident sends me stuck in the past, I decide to try it out by myself. But as my actions cause the reality I once knew to slowly shatter around me, I realise that I might never return to the world I once knew. My name is Kirigaya Kiriko, and this is my story.
1. I Sign My Own Death Certificate

**November 6, 2022 - 1****st**** Floor, Starting City**

"… now I have finished the official tutorial for «Sword Art Online». Players—I wish you luck."

Those lingering words caused a massive surge of panic amongst the many players surrounding me when the mysterious cloaked being disappeared from view. Of course, none of them were prepared for this. Even I, who had heard of the event beforehand, was truly powerless to stop it and it left me shaking. I looked at the blue-haired player avatar next to me whose eyes were wide in shock.

I was the one who brought her here. I was going to be the cause of the destruction of time and space, all because of a VRMMO and my own ignorance. Still, I need to be logical. What is the best way to actually save our skins from death? A sudden thought came to me, and I turned to the girl once more.

"Sinon-san!" I shouted at the top of my lungs "We need to find Kirito-kun, fast! If not, we're both dead!"

I tried to remember what had happened to cause such an event to unravel before me. Just like that, the memory of the past, no, the future came gushing into my head like a terrible flashback… or flashforward.

**October 26, 2052 **

"I can't believe I'm even helping out with this messed up experiment."

"Look at the bright side… at least you're not the one actually doing it!"

"We are endangering the lives of millions of people, and you're not even worried?"

"Papa always says to have a positive outlook on life"

I watched as Aunt Sinon released a sigh and looked over at me. Honestly, I don't see what the problem is. The people over at the lab Papa and Aunt Sinon work at actually made an amazing discovery and I volunteered to test it, but now she's getting real flustered over it! I believe in Papa's experiments, so they should end up real nice and nothing would happen to me.

Of course, Aunt Sinon had other ideas. She liked saying how humans aren't prepared to grasp the concept of time and bend it to our will. Well, nobody at the lab ever takes her seriously; she just likes to worry so much. It's not her fault, though. She's just looking out for the safety of everyone. I believe her, but just the mere thought of it sends me shaking in joy.

"Why are we even doing this?" Aunt Sinon asked me another time as we both sat opposite each other "We've sent physical matter before, isn't that enough? Why a living test subject?"

"The company just wants to test this final theory out, then they'll keep it under wraps, Aunt Sinon" I said with my wide smile that never faltered "I'll be back before you know it!"

"I have a name, you know" Aunt Sinon said with a loud sigh "I never approved you calling me by my Player ID."

"But the name is just so cool!"

Without saying another word, Asada Shino, also known to me as Aunt Sinon, sighed and looked at me right in the eyes. She caressed my long waist-length black hair and used her finger to carefully brush my bangs. She looks at me with such caring eyes; I keep imagining her as Mama. Heh, that's not a bad idea.

Still, her eyes showed a sense of fear, and above all despair. She has taken a great liking to me as well, considering that I like to come over and play at her house. I'm not particularly surprised that she's worried about me. Typical. It took me a month to persuade my parents to allow me to take on this experiment. It'll take six more to persuade Aunt Sinon.

"Do be careful" she finally said and patted my shoulder "I just wish we never made that breakthrough. Humans were never meant to oppose the natural order."

"Got it~" I said cheerfully.

A voice started talking through the intercom, telling me to get ready since the test was about to begin. The two of us walked briskly through the automated doors to the experimentation room. Some nice scientists gave me a change of clothes so I wouldn't get hurt or cold during the transition. I then stood at the centre of the room, where a blue circle glowing with neon lights was.

Behind the transparent walls, I could make out some familiar faces. There was Papa, making some final preparations. I know how much he didn't want to do this, but I'm sure everything will be fine. He must still probably be worried about me since I practically forced him to let me do this. Aunt Sinon could be seen beside him, probably trying to push him into stopping all of this before it was too late. I expected no less from her. She still had some lingering feelings for Papa, so she must be worried about him as much as she's worried about me. She knew he would be devastated if something happened to me.

"The experiment will begin after a short countdown; prepare yourself" a voice of one of the head scientists, Professor Kurogawa, said through the speakers

"Hai~" I sang happily as I pulled the visor I wore above my eyes

"Beginning transportation in three"

"Hey, what's this?" a softer voice could be heard murmuring to himself

"Two"

"This looks like… no!"

"One"

"STOP THE MACHINE!"

Too late. I had just heard the younger man panic when Professor Kurogawa had pushed the button initiating the beginning of the experiment. My senses kicked into overdrive, just like what my parents had taught me. I dove to the side, but I was too late! The blue circle below me emitted a bright light, covering my whole body and dulling all of my senses.

The last thing I saw before I lost consciousness was Papa's face, screaming as his only daughter faded into oblivion. Aunt Sinon was pulling his arm back before he could do anything reckless.

**October 26, 2022. **

How long was I out? It must have been days. I could feel my body growing limp from hunger and fatigue. The baggy clothes that those nice men gave me were covered in dirt, so I stripped it off without hesitation. Beneath it was my usual attire, a black long-sleeved T-shirt with silver linings that was a little too big for me since the sleeves covered my hands and a pair of black pants. Only my sneakers were white, as the running shoes I fancied only had them in white. I seem to have followed Papa's liking for dark clothing, which displeased Mama to no means.

Where was I? More importantly, _WHEN_ was I?

I remembered the experiment I had forced Mama and Papa to allow me to take part in. The first time I had heard about it, I was amazed! It sounded like something that only appears in anime or manga. Mama didn't allow me to do it, and Papa wasn't so eager to allow me to go through with it either. Whatever happened, I'm pretty sure I'm going to get an earful from both of them when I get back.

Experiment Chrono, to experiment with all of time space. Papa and Aunt Sinon were recruited because of how extraordinary they were at their respective fields. A few months ago, they had made an interesting discovery while experimenting on Photon particles. I never understood what all of the hubbub was about, nor do I ever plan to for the next ten years, but all I had to say was freaking _time travel_. They had somehow discovered time travel through an accident. There was no way I would pass up this chance!

Oh, how idiotic I feel right now.

I quickly stood and checked the surroundings. I'm in an alleyway, brilliant. Not a bad place to stay hidden for the next five minutes. What was it that the scientists said again… something about a hole?

"_We will open the window in precisely five minutes after your arrival time" the nice scientist had told me. "There will be a sudden gust of wind, and a sudden rise in temperature. A sphere should appear soon enough, and it will attract anything with a lower density than it. It will remain open for one minute, so don't miss it"_

I sat down and looked at the scenery before me. What time was I sent to? If I had brains like my parents, I would have found out by now. But no, I am what people in my school called a "special student". I knew what they meant, though. I'm an idiot, with some of the worst results in school. Mama always told me to study more, but I just can't do it. In the end, I was playing video games; I wasn't even touching my school books.

I feel so self-degrading.

That doesn't matter right now! I'll just have to wait for five minutes, right? Then I should be able to enter through the window the nice scientists open and find out that scream was just a huge prank. Yup, no worries!

As I sat down once more, I saw a cat run past me.

…

…

…

"Kitty!"

Oh my God, what a cute little kitty cat! It ran around all over the place, and I happily followed behind with my arms outstretched in front of me. It was a white kitty cat with black spots covering his body. It also had the cutest eyes I have ever seen! After chasing it around for a few minutes, it took me a while before I realised something terrible.

I'm completely lost.

Where did I come from? Where was that alley again? Oh, how am I going to explain this to Mama and Papa? I started frantically running around, looking for any signs of the alley. As I was running around, I bumped into someone when I was looking across the road for the alleyway.

"Sorry, my bad" I apologised, rubbing my head and looking at the person I had bumped into

He was insanely muscular and had his hair in a Mohawk. Tattoos covered the exposed skin from his shirt with torn-off sleeves. I could see several chains and pins sticking out all around his face. His face was distorted and messed up, probably from birth. I know these kinds of people. After all, I meet them on a regular basis and I'm on first name terms with them.

"You look ugly"

"WHY YOU LITTLE-!"

I never said I was friends with them.

As fast as my legs could carry me, I ran away from them. It was at this time that I put all the training I had poured into VRMMOs to practice. Swiftly manoeuvring through the crowd as I would any monster mob, I narrowly avoided the ruffian and tried to blend in with the cluster of random people. It was easy enough since I'm small, but I couldn't let my guard down. That scary man might still be chasing me!

I suddenly remembered something important: the time! Since chasing that cat and being chased by that scary guy, about… 20 minutes had passed. Hold on, 20 minutes? That was weird, it couldn't have been that long. I haven't felt a sudden gust of wind or a rise in temperature. Surely they must have opened the window… right?

I walked around a bit more before I finally caved in and asked a man the directions to the alley. Sure, it took another 5 minutes to explain which alley I was talking about, but I finally made it back! But… what do I do now? I'm pretty sure the nice scientists also told me about a failsafe in case I didn't make it through the first window.

"_Another window will open in an hour after the first window. If you miss that, we will open up another on in six hours. Last window will be twenty four hours after the first window opened, got it?"_

Oh right… that.

I sat near the chosen location of the window and waited, and waited, and waited. Two hours must have passed by and still no sign of anyone coming to rescue me. I thought of the impossibility of this situation. There was no way Papa would leave me behind, and Mama would have tried with all her might to save me. Aunt Sinon would be working hard to come rescue me. In fact, I bet that even Uncle Klein and Uncle Agil would help out if Papa asked them to.

So what happened? Why did that scientist want to stop the machine? Did it have something to do with why the window didn't open up?

My stomach grumbled, and I finally realised how weak I have become. I'm pretty sure my lively face has started to pale. It always did if I don't have enough energy. My eyes started drooping lazily as the world around me turned hazy. Is this how I die? Huddled up in an abandoned alley waiting for help that might never arrive?

"Oh my, what are you doing here?"

The voice of an angel~ Has God sent me an angel to guide me to Heaven?

"You look really weak, I'll have to bring you home. Where is your home?"

The owner of the voice had lifted me up on said person's back and walked slowly away. I didn't know if this person was a boy or a girl, but for now I didn't care. I'm just so tired and hungry! Maybe I should have listened to Aunt Sinon's pleas. Maybe she was right… maybe humans were never meant to dabble in the time space continuum. Right now, I could be at home, pretending to listen to Mama's speeches while I listened to music to drown out her voice.

I wonder what Mama is doing right now. She must be worried sick. Then again, how could she not be worried? I'm in an entirely new era, not to mention I'm stuck in a different timeline right now. If anything, the person who would become Mama in the future could be a kid right now. That or she hasn't even been born yet. I need to find out what year it is, but I'm too tired…

"You must be too weak to answer that" the person said in a soft, yet worried tone. "Then a name, what is your name?"

"Kiriko…" I said weakly "Kirigaya Kiriko"

* * *

**A/N ****Yeah, a new AU fic made by me. Honestly saying, I don't know how successful this story might be. It will kick off to SAO in two more chapters, and until then I'm threading on thin ice. Would people read this? Will it be successful? Well, only time will tell.**

**Credit to Bznboy for unintentionally giving me the idea for this fic, and allowing me to use Kiriko.**

**Main pairing is Kirito X Sinon**

**I would like to thank Krawling Khaos for helping me to edit this chapter of the story. Now, whenever a story has been edited, I will put up a small note at the end of the chapter. Enjoy!**


	2. I Accidentally Promote Suicide

**October 27, 2022. **

"_Papa… a bunch of girls like you, right? Doesn't Mama ever get jealous?"_

"_She doesn't really mind. Well, except that one time she caught me and Liz…"_

"_You… and Aunt Lisbeth…? What?"_

"_N-Nothing, forget I said anything!"_

"UWAH!"

That was a terrible way to start the day. Nay, that was a terrible way to start anything! Honestly, why did I have to remember that story again?

I rubbed my head and looked around my room. That's strange. I don't remember my bed sheets being white. And it looked real clean too. There was no evidence of snack crumbs or dirt stains on the bed. The room seems different too. It was really empty, and the desk was stacked with tons of revision books. Those can't be my books. I always ask Mama and Yui-neesan to help me with my homework, so I never actually had the need to buy anything like revision and exercise books.

Blinking back my fatigue, I yawned and tried to make sense of what happened to me. I remember getting up in the morning, eating the breakfast Mama had prepared for me. I left with Papa for work and met Aunt Sinon at the lab. There, something happened while I was taking part in a time travel experiment. And then… what happened again?

Oh right… I remember. I appeared in an alleyway somewhere in the past, and got lost chasing this cute little kitty cat. I got even more lost while I was being chased by a scary man, but I did manage to find my way back to the alley I first appeared in. I waited for a few hours, but… no help came. I didn't see the window opening, nor did any message get left behind for me to pick up. I was alone and stranded in the past.

All seemed hopeless, like I was shipwrecked in a sea of misfortune. It was then that a single ray of hope had decided to shine upon me. I was saved by some stranger just as I was falling into unconsciousness. That reminds me, I have to thank whoever that person was before I leave. Yes, I had to leave. I was told not to disrupt the fabric of space and time before entering the testing chamber.

Could I still contact Yui-neesan from this time? I know she's a genius AI, and her new body that Papa had helped invent made her able to move around in the real world effortlessly. She told me that if anything happened that left me unable to contact Mama and Papa, I should contact her. But… would a call for help transcend time and space? I gulped, hoping that it could.

"I see you've woken up."

I turned my head slowly to face the person who just spoke, wondering who the voice belonged to. The person I saw was an old lady, standing in the doorway with a tender smile on her wrinkled face. I wondered if she was my saviour, but quickly shot down that idea. I remembered that the voice of that person who saved me earlier sounded rather young.

"Yeah, I'm good to go!" I lied. I'm hungry as hell and I need some food "Sorry for intruding, I can leave right now if you like."

"That's quite alright, you don't need to leave" she said with a smile. "My granddaughter was the one who brought you here last night. She was quite worried about you. If you wish to leave, please at the very least say good-bye to her first."

I nodded and slowly got up, realising that I was having a bit of trouble in doing so. That was when the words of Professor Kurogawa echoed through my head.

"_There's a time and place for everything, but now is not the time to do that!_"

Wait, wrong memo.

"_Time travelling takes a lot of energy, and you should lose about half of yours when you reach your destination. Please refrain from wasting any energy so you won't black out._"

I then proceeded to chase a cat… and run away from some gangster. Wow, I should get an award for my stupidity. I ended up having so much trouble getting up the old lady had to _help me_ up. Talk about a blow to my pride. Here I am, a young, fit, thirteen year old girl, being helped by someone's grandma.

"Since you are having difficulty standing, I think you should rest a bit more before leaving dear. It could be problematic for you in the future if you don't" the old lady said in a worried tone. Her eyes showed her kind intentions.

Looking at her eyes, I couldn't help but remember Mama. She always had that same sparkle in her eyes, and she was always smiling. Sure, Mama got mad whenever I didn't do my homework or failed my tests, but she would always smile and shake her head afterwards. I didn't realise that my eyes were watering until the old lady spoke once more.

"What's wrong? Is something the matter?"

"N-no" I wiped the tears from my eyes. "Just thinking about my Mom… that's all."

It took a split second before I realised what I just said. The way my voice sounded when I said it seemed like I was never going to see her again. Well, that might be true. I had no idea if she had been born yet, nor am I able to contact her. It was like I truly had lost her.

"Poor dear…" murmured the old lady. "I'll go fix you up something to eat. Then I'll see if there's anything my family and I could do to help you find your family."

She brought me to a dining room, and had me sit at a table. She then proceeded to prepare me a bowl of cereal. I didn't realise how hungry I was. The food in front of me just tasted so delicious right now. I felt like I haven't eaten in days. I could practically eat the bowl! After keeping myself from devouring the now empty glass bowl, I looked around the house. Noticing a mirror on the far right wall, I found myself gazing at my reflection, and could safely say that I looked as though I was the poster girl for some random generic FPS game. I was still wearing the same clothes as yesterday, and they looked all messed up and damp from sweat. My hair was pretty messy too. I looked rather ridiculous if you asked me.

"The bathroom is the first door on your right when you enter the hallway. Feel free to use it to tidy up" the old lady said with a smile as she watched me messing with my hair "If you want to borrow a change of clothes, I'm sure Shino won't mind lending you some of hers."

"Alright" I happily replied. Then a thought popped into my head. "Um… who's Shino?"

"She's my granddaughter. Asada Shino"

"Oh, okay!"

I happily walked through the hallway and entered the bathroom. After I had taken off my clothes, I started reminiscing on my life, enjoying the feeling of the hot water on my skin. I guess this Asada Shino person must have been the one who saved me. I laughed a little. It's funny how that girl's name was the same as Aunt Sinon's real name… wait a second…

Aunt Sinon's real name was…

Asada Shino…

"SHIT!"

I rushed out of the bathroom in nothing but a towel, hoping that I was wrong. The next thing I knew, I had bumped into somebody. I looked at the person I had run into and started apologising. Apologises flew out of my mouth like machine gun bullets.

My mouth slammed shut the moment I saw who I it was.

"No need to apologise."

Short black hair that was cut shoulder length… dull grey eyes that seemed to suck you in… glasses that had no use whatsoever… a bust size I could never make fun of due to my own flat-chest… even that calm, kind expression that made people think of her as antisocial. There was no mistaking it. This person was Aunt Sinon.

_My_ Aunt Sinon!

"A-a-ah-a-ah-"

"Sorry, but are you still using the bathroom? I'm sort of in a rush."

"NO, I'M DONE!" I panicked and began dashing straight for the room I had woken up in.

Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit. My first trip into the past and I _had _to meet Aunt Sinon out of all people. I should be glad she wasn't Papa or Mama; that would be terrible. But still, Aunt Sinon and I are really close. This is bad… what will happen if I tell her she won't get married when she grows up?!

The facts slowly ran into my head. Aunt Sinon, or better known as Asada Shino, had saved me last night. I am in her house, and I panicked like a dying parakeet in front of her. She… still lives with her grandmother. So according to all the stories she's told me, she must not have entered high school yet. That also means I'm in Tokyo…_I'm in Tokyo_!? How did I get here from Kawagoe?!

Right… time travel…

I take a few deep breaths, and try to pull myself together. Before anything else happens, I better put on some clothes. Aunt Sinon… or maybe I should call her Shino now? Never mind, that isn't important right now. What matters right now is that I need some clothes. Her grandmother had said it was alright if I borrowed some. I walked over to the nearest wardrobe and opened it, revealing clothing that would fit a girl that was around my age.

"These… are Aunt Sinon's clothes…" I muttered. "Then this must be her room…"

Yes, Aunt Sinon was always really tidy and studied a lot. She even managed to get into a good university with her academic results, despite being a gamer. It should not surprise me at all that her past self was also this tidy. Still, if I was sleeping in her room… and woke up alone… where did she sleep last night? Man do I feel embarrassed! I was a guest, and I was using one of my host's beds.

I felt a little strange using another girl's underwear, but I had little choice. They were soon followed by a pair of dark green shorts. I also picked out a simple with T-shirt and a black hoodie jacket with green linings. I quickly brushed down my long hair, which was an easy task, thanks to it still being a little damp. I left the room, and ended up face to face with Asada Shino, the past self of my favourite Aunt.

No, saying face to face was an understatement. Due to my height, I was left facing her chest, and had to look up to see her face.

"Sorry, your grandma said I could borrow you clothes, Shino-san" I said with a cheeky smile on my face.

"Oh, that's alright. I had grandma tell you that you could" Shino said with her soft smile. "Your name was Kirigaya… right?"

"Yup, it is! You can just call me Kiriko."

I stayed in her room for a few more minutes, watching this young girl putting on her school uniform. Her movements were a little slow, and I could daresay that she looked a little sad as well. If I recall, Aunt Sinon had once told me about her rather dark past. She fell in love with Papa when he had saved her from a guy called Death Gun. If she hasn't met Papa yet, then that means that she must still not be over her hoplophobia. She probably also feels the weight of her guilty conscience. Being considered a murderer is rather tough on people like her.

"Where are you from, Kiriko-san?" Shino asked me, breaking the silence.

"Um… Kawagoe, Saitama Prefecture"

"That's almost an hour away. What are you doing all the way here in Tokyo?"

"I… got on the wrong train?"

Apparently, my lie was obvious. Luckily for me, Shino didn't seem to mind at all.

"Is… your family worried? You could borrow my phone and give them a call if you want"

Well, it's now or never. I accepted the phone and dialled Yui-neesan's number. She probably wouldn't be able to answer, but still worth a try I guess. I was about to hang up, knowing I was most likely not going to get an answer. Then I heard a voice I thought I would never hear again, and my heart did a backflip.

"Kiriko… what have you done this time?"

To be honest, I didn't know what to say. Here I am, stuck about thirty, maybe forty years in the past and my AI sister picked up the phone! This should be impossible… yet it's happening right now! Quickly thinking up of a great excuse, I left the room and ran into the bathroom.

"How did you know it was me?!" I asked frantically once I locked the bathroom door.

"You're the only person I know who would call me using this number."

Wow, so she made a separate number just for me when I'm in trouble. I didn't know if I should feel glad or insulted.

"Listen, I don't know how much this call is going to cost, but I need your help. I'm not even sure if you _can_ help me"

"Wait, aren't you supposed to be with Papa at his lab?"

"That's the problem. I was with Papa and Aunt Sinon, but something happened and I'm stuck… in the past…"

I could hear something shattering over the phone. No doubt Yui-neesan was drinking something when I said that. How an AI was able to drink anything I will never know… but now wasn't the time to be thinking about that. Yui-neesan was silent for a few minutes before she spoke once more. When she did, her voice sounded incredibly worried. It also sounded kinda scared.

"No… out of all the people… why?!" Thanks for the reassurance, Neesan… "This is bad. Okay, first things first. Did you meet anyone who you may know in the future? Did you mess up any important events?"

"I'm not really sure I messed up anything, unless that cat I chased was going to be president of the United States, but I _did_ meet Aunt Sinon-"

"You did _what_!?"

I sighed and slowly explained everything that had happened to me. Yui-neesan never once interrupted me, but I could tell she was worried. Yes, I might be annoying and abuse her intelligence to cheat on tests sometimes, but at the end of the day, we're still sisters. She's terribly worried of not just me, but everyone else too. I might have destroyed someone's future just by being here.

When I was done telling her my story, Yui-neesan finally spoke.

"I have a hypothesis as to how we're able to talk to one another." Great, that's one mystery down. "Maybe with you there, a wormhole has formed, one that crosses the barrier of time and space. It seems to causing our timelines to converge. You're from the future, so residual energy from your native time might be leaking through, allowing me to speak with you. Remember, this is all speculation. I advise you not to do anything foolish. If something happens that could alter the future, we might not be able to contact each other again."

"So you're saying me being able to contact you is my only way of knowing if I didn't drastically change the future? What if I am able to contact others, but not you?

"To answer your first question, that is most likely the case" Yui-neesan sighed before continuing. "As for your second question, I can't really say for sure. I don't know if you can even reach anyone else, since they are affected by time. Since I'm an AI, I don't have a natural aging process, and am unaffected by time. The others might face adverse effects if you contacted them. I'd try to bring you back myself, but I don't know _how_ to bring you back. Most of the information on 'Chrono' is listed as 'classified', and only an official can access them. The only exception is a file on the use of tachyon particles in the experiment."

"Wait, tachyon particles? I thought they were using photon particles?"

"I don't even know why you would even think… never mind. Do you want me to explain what tachyon-"

"No, I'm good!" I yelled louder than I ever have. Just thinking about learning some scientific term makes my brain feel incredibly numb. "Just… tell me what I should do."

"All I can do is remind you not to interfere with Aunt Sinon's life. She's very important in regards to Papa's future. She's important in a few VRMMO incidents in the future, and if she doesn't end up playing Gun Gale Online, then the future will change drastically." Yui-neesan's voice started breaking, and I think I can hear her crying. "Just… be safe. Papa is smart; he should be able to help find a way to bring you back. I miss you, and I'll wait for the day you return."

We exchanged words once more before I finally hung up. I slowly slid down the bathroom wall, clutching the cellphone tightly to my chest. I was stuck here until someone could send me help, which I doubt will be coming anytime soon. If help WAS coming, they would have opened up a portal somewhere else. It probably would have been much earlier in time too. I don't want to face the possibility that I may be stuck here forever, but that might be what ends up happening. I may have to live the remainder of my life in the past, growing up alongside my Aunt.

Someone knocked on the door, breaking me out of my sad trance.

"Kiriko-san, are you okay? You've been in there for quite a while."

Shino… she must have been worried about me. Looking at the phone's clock, I notice that it's almost eight o'clock. She was going to be late for school because of me. I quickly checked the date, and my eyes widened in shock. It was 2022, the year that Mama and Papa had told me changed their lives forever. This was the year that the death game, «Sword Art Online», came out!

"Y-Yeah, I'm fine" I said as I got up and smoothed the wrinkles in my clothes. "I was just talking with my sister…"

She didn't bother me about it when I came out, probably because she was respecting my privacy. I bet I looked really depressed, she since she frowned when she saw my face. Shino, after saying goodbye to her mother and grandparents, left for school. I followed closely behind, not wanting to impose on her family and not wanting to feel like a burden. Shino showed me around the area and told me of some popular spots as we walked, most of which I took note of. I had to have an idea of what the area is like if I wanted to leave Shino's house alone at any point in the future.

We passed by a poster that was in the window of a video game store. It was promoting the first ever VRMMO game, «Sword Art Online». If only they all knew what was going to happen when they started that game, nobody would have bought it. I had the sudden urge to tell Shino, but I slapped my cheeks before I did. Aunt Lisbeth and her twin sons had always told me I had loose lips, and I was worried I might spoil something by accident.

"Have you ever played a video game?" I ask sporadically. I had an idea of what her answer was going to be, but I asked anyway.

"Hmm? Me? Not really. I'm not into that kind of stuff. Swordplay and Magic I mean." Shino casually replied. "I doubt I would even have enough money to buy a Nerve Gear."

I nod my head. I knew she would say something like that. I then realised that we finally reached Shino's school. I could see the reluctance in her expression. She didn't really want to enter the school grounds, but I didn't comment on it. I know Aunt Sinon hated her school, but I never really asked why. It was probably due to some reason involving the incident from a few years back.

"So… I'll see you after school?" I asked.

"Yeah, see you after school…"

We then parted ways. I started thinking about what to do. I knew I had to leave Shino's house at some point in order to not disrupt the time space continuum. The trouble was that I also had nowhere else to go. Either way, I needed money. As fate would have it, I end up passing a café with a help-wanted ad in the window. It said they were looking for people around my age. I instantly headed inside to ask about a job.

**November 5, 2022.**

"Welcome home, Master!"

I looked at the customer who had come in and fell silent. An awkward silence passed us as we both stared at each other. I was wearing a maid uniform and cat ears, and Shino was staring at me with an awkward expression on her face, as if asking me 'why are you dressed like that?'

"This… isn't what it looks like?" I said, feeling my whole face sweat.

"Trust me, I don't wanna know" Shino casually replied with an awkward grin.

I brought her over to a table and took her order, all the while trying to keep the situation as casual as possible. The awkward nature of our meeting makes this hard for me though. After serving her the food she ordered, I asked my boss if I could have my lunch break. He said I could, so I sat next to Shino, bringing my own lunch. Her face was full of questions, and I wasn't sure how to answer any of them.

"So…"

"I needed the money, okay!" I suddenly blurted out, before closing my mouth in embarrassment.

Shino gave me a weird look as she ate her food, and I tried my best to ignore it. Honestly, I didn't want Shino to find out about this for as long as possible. It hasn't even been two weeks since I had got this job. I had wanted to keep it hidden for a little longer, but I guess the cat's out of the bag now.

"Why?" Shino finally asked, breaking the awkward silence. "You only bought like, three sets of clothes and you barely buy anything else."

"To fix my time machine" I lied. If only it were that simple.

"Kiriko-san…" she said, sounding un-amused by my little joke.

"I want to buy that VRMMO, okay?"

"Eh?!"

To tell the truth, that was the reason I'm still working here. After a few days of working, I had given up on leaving her house. I had become extremely interested in SAO. Sure, it's supposed to be a «death game» and people who died in the game would die in real life, but that won't stop a hardcore gamer like me! It was the first ever VRMMO! I can't pass up this chance to play it! And after I had learned about Papa and Mama's adventures from Yui-neesan, I just have to play it!

'_You found out about time travel and wanted to be the first one to try it_' my consciousness reminded me. '_Now look where you are._'

I felt kind of bad. I called Yui-neesan a few more times during my stay, and she was really unimpressed when I told her I haven't left the house yet. She told me that some things were starting to change. Nothing serious had changed yet, according to her, so everything was fine for now. She told me that if I didn't get brought back soon, something bad might happen… something that could destroy the future entirely.

Sometimes, I tried calling other people I knew. My old friends, Mama and Papa's friends, but no one picked up. Only Yui-neesan was able to pick up my calls. Neither of us could explain it, so we could only hold on to the theory that me being here has opened a wormhole. Papa, Aunt Sinon, and the other scientists working there had disappeared. According to Yui-neesan, the error that had left me stranded in the past had also caused the entire facility to explode. I prayed that Papa was safe, but I knew it was most likely hopeless. Yui-neesan also told me Mama slipping further and further into a depression with each passing day. I can only hope I will make it back soon.

"Why do you want to play it so badly?" Shino asked me after a moment of silence. "Is it really that important that you play it? I mean, it's just a game."

"Well, no…" I tried to say casually. "Th-The truth is… Something happened to my Dad and my Aunt. They both like to play video games, so I thought that maybe, if I play it, I could feel like they were here with me right now…"

Another moment of silence passed between us. Shino had never asked me why I didn't want to go home, but I had told her I couldn't go back no matter how much I wanted to. I suddenly felt Shino pulling me into an embrace, and we finished lunch slowly after that. Out of all people I know, Shino must be the one who could understand loss the most.

"I'll buy the game too… if you want" Shino suddenly said when she was getting ready to pay the bill. "I have some money saved up. Let's go buy the Nerve Gear after you're done with your shift."

"Okay, Shino-san!" I perked up.

I watched Shino walk out the door and leave the café. She would probably be waiting for a while, since my shift isn't over for another hour or so. As I was walking back to the front entrance to greet the next customer, I thought about how fun it would be to play SAO with my parents and their friends. My eyes snapped open and my smile disappeared in an instant.

Shino was never supposed to play SAO!

"Shit!" I whispered to myself, knowing that I had just screwed up big time.

**November 6, 2022.**

"That was a long line, wasn't it?" Shino asked with her same calming smile.

"E-eh, yeah…"

I'm scared…no… I'm _extremely terrified_! There's no way Shino will back down now, since she had bought the game when I did. I prayed that the two copies we bought didn't belong to anyone important. If they were the copies that were supposed to be bought by someone like Uncle Klein or Aunt Lisbeth, then the future was beyond screwed.

We told Shino's mother and grandparents that we would be in the room for a while, and plugged in the Nerve Gear. I tried my best to delay the inevitable, knowing that no matter what I did, it was too late. All of yesterday, I tried to persuade Shino to not buy the Nerve Gear. She didn't really understand my sudden change of heart, but she either saw through my lies or just tuned them out. She ended up buying one anyway. Damn it, I need to learn to lie in a more believable way. Why did I have to get the ability to always tell the truth from Mama and Papa's girlish looks? I swear, if Aunt Silica and Aunt Lisbeth compare me to Papa's GGO avatar again… I'll-

"Are you ready, Kiriko-san?" Shino had asked me, looking at me, not knowing she wouldn't see my face in this world for two years.

"Yeah!" I replied. I was already sweating bullets. This was it. There was no turning back now.

I swept my bangs away from my eyes and put on the helmet-like gaming console. Beside me, Shino had also done the same. She lied down on her bed while I rested on the futon I had sprawled on the floor and never picked up. It wasn't the best place to be lying down, but that wouldn't matter in the end. We waited for the clock to turn to one o'clock, all the time I was praying that something would happen to Shino's Nerve Gear. I hoped that it was faulty, or there was an error that would keep SAO from launching. This was seriously going to mess up the future, but I was powerless to stop it. So hoping that her Nerve Gear wouldn't work properly was all I could do.

1:00 was displayed on the internal clock. Well, farewell physical world, I'll see you in two years.

"«LINK START!»" Shino commanded, and after a few moments of silence, I knew my prayers hadn't been answered. I then spoke the command that had sealed the future's fate. I had to make sure that Shino made it out alive. This was my responsibility after all.

I passed through the initial flashing lights and sensor detectors. I was used to this. In fact, I've played so many VRMMOs that my play time exceeds the time I leave the house. And don't even get me started on Brain Burst. Oh, the play time…

I quickly created my «Avatar», not really caring about what I looked like. According to Mama and Papa, all players will be converted to their original look as soon as the «Tutorial» ends. I did, however, give myself my original long black hair. What can I say? I love my hairstyle.

Logging in, I see thousands of people logging in as well. Among all these players, there are some players named Klein, Agil, Silica, Lisbeth, Asuna and Kirito. If possible, I want to avoid them at all cost. The question was how? Oh yeah, there are thousands of players here. There was a higher chance of PK-ing someone than meeting them. Still, I should be real careful.

I stood by the «Monument of Life», the place where I promised to meet Shino. She was most likely going by Sinon now, but I'm not even sure if she will choose the same player ID. Would she also choose the sky blue hair that she was famous for? I hope she does, that hair really fit her character.

"Yo, Ki…ri…ko...kun…" I heard a voice speak, and turned towards the general direction it had come from.

There stood Sinon, the ice sniper. She looked exactly like her old GGO character, which made me think that she was destined to look like that. Of course, calling her the 'ice sniper' now wasn't really appropriate. She wasn't a sniper right now; she's a swordswoman at the moment. In fact, she might never become a sniper if this keeps up. I quickly checked my «Player Menu» and noticed that the «Log Out» command was still there. Good. If I could somehow persuade Sinon to log out before the log out command disappears, all will be well.

"Ah, Sinon-san!" I casually called out after closing the menu "Welcome to «Aincrad»!"

"Why… did you use your name for your player avatar?"

"Eh? No I didn't" I retorted. "I took the first two syllables from my family name and the last syllable from my given name and mixed it together!"

I looked at my player name, «Kiriko», and suddenly saw it in a new light. **Kiri**gaya Kiri**ko**.

…

Did I really inherit Mama's terrible naming ability? Apparently I did… great.

"Ah, forget it" I finally shouted. "Why are you playing this game anyway? I thought you didn't like fantasy games!"

"I thought that if you liked these things, and you're staying with me in my place, its best that I find out more about you by coming into this world" Sinon answered with a calm expression. "Plus, I thought that I might be able to help you with… what happened with your family…"

"Right, right, that's nice" I murmured. I started to walk around «Starting City», trying to think of a way to get her to Iog out as soon as possible. She followed beside me, marvelling at how real this world looked. I had to think of something… anything to get her out of this death trap before it was too late.

I have a feeling I'm going to fail miserably…

* * *

**A/N This story has been officially edited by Krawling Khaos. Thanks Khaos~**


	3. I Meet My Father's Twin Sisters

**November 6****th****, 2022 – First Floor, Starting City**

"Alright, Sinon-san… all you have to do is gather up your energy. When you feel the «Sword Skill» activate, your weapon should glow. When it does, you release it, and BAM! The system should do the rest for you."

"I see…"

I raise my spear and pull my arm back, ready to strike. The tip of my weapon of choice, the «Basic Spear», was engulfed in a blue hue. I felt an energy course through my body as the system began guiding me through the simple Sword Skill «Pierce». My body felt incredibly light as I thrust the spear into my target, a Level 1 monster called a «Frenzy Boar». Said monster then exploded in a bright flurry of red polygons as its HP hit zero.

I look over at Kiriko, smiling cheerfully. A white screen suddenly appeared in front of me, declaring how much experience and «Col» I had received.

"That was great! You hit that pig right on the middle of its forehead! How'd you do that?!" she asked, her voice oozing with excitement.

"I just kept calm and aimed for somewhere I thought it would hurt the most" I reply, returning the spear to its holster on my back. I look to Kiriko, an expression of pure curiosity on my face. "How do _you_ even know how this game works? I'm pretty sure you're not a «Beta Tester», and you haven't read the «User Manual» either. How would you know how to even use a «Sword Skill»?"

Kiriko's body froze up for a second. Her right eye twitched like it always did whenever I had brought up a seemingly sensitive subject. I haven't known her for very long, but I was able to pick up on that odd gesture rather quickly. I know she's hiding something, but I don't want to pressure her into telling me what it was. She probably has her reasons as to why she won't tell me, and I respect that.

After all, I know what it feels like to have a secret you want to keep hidden. I knew that better than anybody.

"We-well…" Kiriko's stuttering pulled me out of my train of thought. "Why were you at that Cosplay Café anyway!?"

"I followed you" I answered matter-of-factly.

"Just… shut up!"

I chuckle a little and walk around, searching for more Boars. I had to admit, this game is rather fun. I could see myself even becoming a bit of an addict in the future. For now though, I just want to see Kiriko happy.

"Uwah~" Kiriko moaned as she caught up behind me. "I'm hungry. Wanna take a break for an early supper?"

That's another reason I think she's hiding something. Ever since we first logged in, Kiriko has been trying to get me to log out. I don't know what her problem is, but I'm not going to log out because she wants me to. Besides, the way she acted when her half-assed attempts fail was quite amusing.

"No thanks" I say with a straight face. "You go on ahead without me, pig."

"Is there something wrong with eating!?"

"Well, you are always cramming something into your mouth. I'm surprised you are able to keep as slim as you are. In more places than one, too"

I heard a silent groan escaping her lips and smirked. She knew she had failed again, and was clearly upset about it. I'm not planning on logging out until she tells me why it's so important that I do, but knowing her stubborn personality, she probably won't tell me.

The two of us walked around for a bit, battling a reasonable amount of «Frenzy Boars» and «Dire Wolves» along the way. After a half hour had passed, I noticed two other players ahead of us. One was a male swordsman with the default blue armour, and the other was a red-haired male player with a curved sword wearing the red variant of the default armour.

"Hey, do you want to go talk with those players over there?" I ask Kiriko, pointing in the direction of the two of them. "They might have some good advice for defeating the mobs out here."

"Eh? Sure, why not?"

I swear she's not even listening to me. Oh well…

The two of us make our way over to the two other players. When we got closer, I can tell that they were both looking at us. The red-haired player had this slightly perverted look in his eyes which I brushed aside. Don't worry, I bet they think that there are no real girls on the internet. They probably think that we're just two guys who are playing as girls because we want the added attention.

That sounds pretty pathetic now that I think about it.

"It's n-nice to meet you!" The red-haired person shouted at the top of his lungs "I'm just a guy n-n-named Klein! Bachelor! Twenty-four!"

*THWAP*

Kiriko's hand stuck the person named Klein with a quick chop. It had happened so fast that I didn't even notice her moving her hand.

"Nice to meet you too, Voyeur." I noticed that her expression was one of mild annoyance, like she had dealt with a guy like this in the past. Maybe even the same person.

"V-Voyeur?"

"What else am I supposed to call someone who willing gives out his Player ID, hoping to score with two random people who may not even be girls at all?"

I felt my heart shatter when I heard Kiriko speak those words. The two of them are sure to think at least one of us is a guy. I grabbed Kiriko's hand and pulled her away, already regretting my decision to talk with these two. Seriously, what the hell is wrong with Kiriko today?

"D-Don't believe everything she says" I quickly retorted. "There's no way I'm actually some guy who chose a female character model to fulfil some weird desires!"

Oh no.

"I never said we were, right?" Kiriko answered, her lips curling into a teasing grin. "Come on, let's get going."

I agree and turn around, casually walking away as the two swordsmen disappeared into the horizon. Honestly, what was I thinking? One of the reasons I don't play games like this is because of perverts like him! I can't believe it was _my_ idea to go talk to them! What on earth was I thinking!? That those two might be different!?

I turned to face Kiriko. Her eyes were wide open and she was forcing a smile. There was no doubt about it, she was hiding something again. Could it be that she knew who that Klein person was? Or did she know the black haired swordsman?

"Hey, Sinon-san…" Kiriko started. She had been quiet since we had parted ways with Klein and the other swordsman. "How long have we been playing this?"

I looked at the chronometer that rested on the bottom left corner of my vision, noticing that it was just about five o'clock. I told her the time, and her eyes instantly shot open. Her body froze up and her right eye twitched. This time though, she looked like she was in a panic, like something bad was about to happen. It must be related to what she was hiding from me, but why was the time so important to her?

"FOUR HOURS?!" Kiriko shouted at the top of her lungs. "We've been playing for FOUR freakin' hours?!"

I nod, unsure of what to say. Why is she acting like this? Kiriko, her eyes glazed over with fear, struck the air with her thumb and index finger, opening her «Player Window». She proceeded to go through the menus, as if looking for something. When she had stopped, she looked as though she had just lost everything. Her eyes were filled with despair when she looked up at me, tears forming. I close the distance between the two of us, and attempted to embrace the girl. Before I could attempt to comfort her, she silently fell to her knees, as if she was accepting death.

"Kiriko-san!" I shouted. "Kiriko-san, what's wrong?! Is everything alright?"

"No…" her voice sounded distant. It felt like she barely even here right. "Nothing's alright. In fact, everything is about to fall apart…"

A wave of curiosity and fear engulfed me. What happened to Kiriko? What did she see in her Player Window that made her lose all hope? I carefully raised my right hand and summoned my own Player Window, looking for anything out of the ordinary. I scanned every sub-menu and found nothing. Everything looked like it had when I had first checked it.

Then I noticed it…

The place where the «Log Out» command was supposed to be was blank. I pressed it, but nothing happened. I tried out every other command, all of which worked as they should. I realised then that only the «Log Out» button had disappeared. Everything else: stats, Col, items… they were all the same. I glance at Kiriko once more and a new thought entered my mind. Did… she know all this was going to happen? Was this why she had constantly been trying to get me to log out?

"Sinon-san…" Kiriko spoke, her voice cracking up as tears poured from her eyes. "I'm sorry I put you up to this…"

I only shake my head in defiance as I helped her up. She seemed like she was at an all-time low, not like the girl that had been excited to play this game at all. I couldn't help but feel incredibly guilty, that the reason she was like this was all because of me. I start to wonder if I had lost yet another friend… I hope that isn't the case. The mere thought made me feel helpless and alone. I don't ever want to be alone again…

"Come on, Kiriko-san" I say, hoping to liven up the mood a little. "Let's go hunt some more monsters while we wait for this whole mess to clear up."

"Mm…" Kiriko solemnly nodded. "Let's go, Sinon-san…"

And so we continued hunting any monster we could find. We had levelled up to level two while we waited for the issue to be resolved. I would be willing to bet that we were the two of the highest levelled characters since the monsters barely gave out any redeemable «EXP». Well, it'd be likely that Kiriko was and I wasn't. She fought like a seasoned veteran, as if she had been playing this game for years. I don't know how she got that good as quickly as she did, but I wanted to. Every so often, I would check the «Player Menu». Much to my dismay, the log out button remained missing.

About thirty minutes had passed when the two of us heard the sound of bells ringing in the distance. I turned to look where the sound had come from, a sense of dread filling me. Normally, a bell tower would ring in relation to time. This wasn't like that, since it was not a time that bell towers normally rang. I had read somewhere that the only other reason a bell tower rang was to announce the time or an important event. Something was about to happen, and one look at Kiriko's face told me that whatever was about to happen wasn't going to be good.

After I had finished that thought, a bright light surrounded the two of us. I felt my whole body tingle as my vision faded. I felt the grass beneath my feet disappear, and in its place was the feeling of the solid stone. When my vision cleared, I found myself standing in «Stating City's» central plaza. Kiriko was to my left, and we were surrounded by what I could only assume were the other nine thousand, nine hundred and ninety-eight other players. Why had we all been teleported here like that?

"Kiriko-san…" I say, turning to face my friend. "What's going on here?"

"I don't know…" Kiriko replied, though it was obvious she was lying.

The voices of thousands of players were collectively silenced by a single player, telling us all to look up.

When I did, I instantly wish I hadn't.

The bottom of the second floor, one hundred meters above us, was stained by a red checkerboard pattern.

When I looked closely, I could see that the pattern was made up by two phrases crisscrossing on another. The words [Warning] and [System Announcement] were written in blood red. What did this mean? While I didn't know a whole lot about online games like this, I knew that the words [System Announcement] had meant that the «Game Masters» were about to make an important announcement in regards to the game. Could it be about the disappearance of the Log Out button?

Then I noticed that something seemed odd about the pattern. It was like it was… melting.

It was then that something began to ooze out of the centre of the pattern. It looked like the sky was bleeding. It leaked out of the pattern incredibly slowly, as if to drag out the suspense. As it dripped from its source, it began to meld together in mid-air. In a matter of moments, it had begun to take a shape. The end result was a twenty metre tall faceless creature sporting a red robe.

"Players, I welcome you all to my world."

=====KIRIKO======

I've failed. I've completely and utterly failed.

The final phases of the tutorial were playing out right before my eyes, and all I could do was stare at Kayaba Akihiko's avatar. It was incredibly nerve-wracking when I think about it. All my attempts to get Sinon to log out had failed miserably, and I'm sure she saw right through them without a hitch. She was smart, after all. Smart enough to join a group of scientists that figured out how to travel through time.

Word after word struck me like a sledgehammer, laughing at my inability to save my Aunt. I wished the faceless man would just shut up already.

"…now I have finished the official tutorial for «Sword Art Online». Players—I wish you luck." Kayaba Akihiko's spoke before disappearing in a mound of blood-like sludge

Those lingering words caused a massive surge of panic amongst the many players surrounding me when the mysterious cloaked being disappeared from view. Of course, none of them were prepared for this. Even I, who had heard of the event beforehand, was truly powerless to stop it and it left me shaking. I looked at the blue-haired player avatar next to me whose eyes were wide in shock.

I was the one who brought her here. I was going to be the cause of the destruction of time and space, all because of a VRMMO and my own ignorance. Still, I need to be logical. What is the best way to actually save our skins from death? A sudden thought came to me, and I turned to the girl once more.

"Sinon-san!" I shouted at the top of my lungs. "We need to find Kirito-kun, fast! If not, we're both dead!"

Sinon looked at the mirror placed into our inventories by Kayaba Akihiko himself, and we were blinded by bright light. Once the light had faded, I was shocked by the sight in front of me. Just like Papa had said. She no longer looked like Sinon the ice sniper from Gun Gale Online. She was now Asada Shino, only taking on the name of her avatar.

Sinon let out a shriek, dropping the mirror. It shattered into a flurry of pixels when it had collided with the ground.

I looked at the girl who would become my Aunt, and couldn't believe my eyes. Papa had always been told that he had a girlish face, though it had changed a lot when he became an adult. Sinon, while not yet the beauty she would become as an adult, was still incredibly cute for a girl. Despite having been living with her for about two weeks, I had only just noticed a quality about the younger version of my Aunt.

Sinon, without her glasses, looked almost exactly like Papa if he had slightly longer hair.

"Sinon-san!" I shout once more as I grab her hand. "We have to go, NOW!"

I ran as fast I could, dodging the panicking Players as I desperately looked for Papa. Whenever something bad happens, I run to him for help. He always seemed to know what to do. As I thought this, I realised I had just made a huge mistake.

"Kiriko-san" Sinon's silky voice cut through the panic of the crowd. "Who's Kirito?"

"He's… Uh…" I tried to think up of a valid excuse, but I couldn't. "That guy who was with that Klein guy we saw earlier!"

"How do you know his name?" Sinon asked, leaving me dumbfounded. Couldn't she ask this stuff later? I didn't have time to explain this right now.

"Does it matter!? We need to find him, Sinon-san. There's no other way!"

When you find out you are trapped in a video game that can kill you, the last thing you should be asking is 'how do you know that person's name?'

Sinon quieted down almost instantly. She probably realised that I wasn't in the mood to answer her question right now, and stopped asking. She reluctantly followed me, seeing as she had little choice in the matter. I remember Papa told me that he had dragged Uncle Klein to an alleyway to ask him if he wanted to go with him. He told me he wanted to get a head start on the other players, and that Uncle KIein had rejected the offer. No homo.

After a few minutes of running, I finally found the alleyway I was looking for. It then dawned upon me that this was the second huge mistake I had made today.

"He's not supposed to meet us…" I whispered to myself, speaking softly enough so Sinon couldn't hear me.

I turned to Sinon, about to tell her there was a change in plans when a familiar voice called out to us.

"Oi! You two! What are you doing here?"

"VOYEUR!" I shout, turning towards him. I felt myself tense up, scared that I was going to completely screw up the future.

"Oh? It's you two again!" Klein said with an amused grin as he walked towards us. "Good to see you're both girls, eh- URK!"

I karate chopped him in the forehead once more. If anything, I had learned to always be careful when Uncle Klein is around. Ever since I had learned that, I had been chopping him in the head when he got a little too close for comfort. I thought of it as something of a defence mechanism.

"Oi, Klein" Kirito, Papa's younger self, shouted from the other end of the alley. "I'll be going on ahead first. Send me a message if you change your mind."

I could only watch as Papa… no… Kirito turned and dashed off. I sigh, not realising I had been holding that sigh in for a while. I avoided a massive landmine there, and I don't plan on stepping on it anytime soon.

"You know…" Klein said as he massaged his sore forehead. "Now that I've got a good look at your real faces, you both look a whole lot like Kirito over there."

I turn to face Sinon, only to see her blushing. She's just blushing because she's embarrassed, right? No ulterior motives… right? Right!?

"Eh, that's one heck of a coincidence" I said with a laugh, thinking about all the times Aunt Lisbeth and Aunt Silica said I looked like a mirror image of Papa's «GGO» avatar.

"I guess we got off on the wrong foot…" Klein said, holding his right hand out. "I'm «Klein»."

"«Sinon»" the girl beside me said, shaking Klein's hand briefly before letting go.

"«Kiriko»…" I reluctantly tell him, firmly grasping his hand, giving it a quick shake.

"Heh, even your «Player ID» is almost similar to his!" Klein laughed. "Are you his stalker or- AGH!"

With my free hand, I swiftly struck his forehead for the third time that day. Wow, talk about reflexes.

"Kiriko-san…" Sinon said, placing a hand on my shoulder. "What do you suggest we should do?"

"I…"

"You two are free, right?" the question came from Klein. We both nod in response. "I have a few friends to help out, so I'm sort of busy… but I'm worried about Kirito. He's running around on his own and I feel bad that I had to decline his offer to become stronger with him since I need to help my friends.. Could you two do me a favour and make sure that he's okay? He's a «Beta Tester», and that should be enough to keep him alive, but having some company would better his chances."

I look at Sinon, who was already at a loss at what to do. This was an important decision, just like trying to decide what Pokémon you chose as your first starter. Should I chase after Papa, which could the lives of countless people… or should I stick only with Sinon, which could also lead to risking the lives of countless people? Either way, I'm going to be endangering a lot of people. The question is which one would cause the least amount of collateral damage to the timeline... A or B?

"I want to go help Kirito" Sinon said after a brief pause. "You said we needed to find him earlier, and that must mean that he's really important to you. That, or he's really strong and you know about that strength."

"Then it's settled!" I shout at the top of my lungs, fist pumping the air. "Voyeur, we'll go after Kirito-kun. You go after your friends and make sure they're okay!"


	4. I Murder My First Crush

**November 6, 2022 - Outskirts**

"Are we there yet?"

"No."

"Are we there yet?"

"No."

"Are we-"

"Will we magically be teleported to «Horunka Village» if I say 'yes'?"

"Yes?"

I did my best winning smile and made a thumbs-up gesture at Sinon. Honestly, I'm tired of walking. Not physically, but mentally. Papa, or in this case, Kirito, was a Beta Tester. He knows where all the shortcuts and safe zones are. Me and Sinon? We screwed up and crossed five different clusters of mobs, filled with «Frenzy Boars» and «Dire Wolves». Weak? Obviously. Annoying? No shit.

On the bright side, we were three quarters of the way to level three.

Just as I was about to annoy Sinon again, I saw it; «Horunka Village», just a few miles away. I hastened my step and could sense Sinon doing the same. Finally! It was getting dark out, and I'm pretty sure I didn't need to explain how dangerous the monsters get at night. All RPGs had that in their coding. In fact, even Sinon, who's never even touched an RPG before, should know that things become more dangerous at night.

There were about ten buildings altogether in the village. Well, this _is_ a village. I can't wait to get to the higher levels and see the beauty of the original «Aincrad». Sure, I had helped Papa and his friends on occasion in the «ALO» version of the floating castle, and my friends and I hung out around the 40th Floor, but now the entire experience feels brand new. I would be starting, from Ground Zero, and climb my way to the top! Well, at least until we hit floor 75, according to Papa's stories anyway.

"Should we rest?" Sinon asked. She's not used to the fact that she couldn't get fatigued in the game, so she's probably questioning what a typical gamer would do. "There doesn't seem much to do in this village anyway, since it's so small."

"Hold that thought," I say, going into my 'serious thinking mode', with both arms spread apart and my eyes gazing around the immediate area. "First we need to repair our weapons' durability. Then we'll break into every house and talk to every NPC until someone gives us a quest or something."

"What makes you think there is something to do here?"

"We're in a game!" I said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, which it was. "The programmers won't waste their time coding a random village without having something for us to do in it!"

Sinon was taken aback by my rather rough words, but went back to her calm demeanour almost instantly. Seriously, how does she do that? How is she able to bottle up all her feelings? Maybe I really did underestimate the tragic past of Asada Shino. Shrugging off all my worries, I continue onwards with my future Aunt by my side.

Just like in every other RPG ever created, we both started entering every house and talked to all the random NPCs right after repairing our weapons and buying new equipment. Apparently, all the NPCs spoke of a similar subject, a «Village Missus» and her sickly daughter. Without much left to do, the two of us made a mad dash to the only house we haven't entered.

"Hello~," I sang as I opened the door casually. "Anybody have a sick kid here?"

Inside, there was a young lady stirring a pot in the kitchen. Moving in closer, we noticed nothing unusual about the lady. We took a few steps closer, and the lady turned and spoke to us.

"Good evening, journeying swordsmen. You both must be tired. I do wish to offer you some food, but I do not have any at the moment. All I can give the two of you is a single drink of water…"

"Sorry to intrude," Sinon suddenly said, surprising me with her modesty. "We'll just-"

"YES, PLEASE!"

My words quickly cut off Sinon's, and the lady nodded and started to pour water into two old-looking cups from a jug. She set it down onto a table and resumed her stirring. I could hear her make an audible sigh and turned to look at Sinon, who was staring at me with a confused expression.

"Why did you…?"

"She's an NPC. If they give you free stuff, just take it," I told her. God, was I this much of a newbie when I started playing video games? "So anyway, cheers!"

We both drank the cups of water quietly while a strange coughing could be heard from behind a door at the other side of the room. The woman sighed again and I was sure, something was going to happen now. I tugged at Sinon's green light leather tunic. Above the lady, a golden question mark had appeared.

"That's…" Sinon muttered

"The start of a «Quest»… Come on, Sinon!" I squealed at the thought of finally doing something productive. If only I had this much enthusiasm for homework…

We both quickly got off the chairs and walked to the missus. Tapping her shoulder, the lady turned to us with a frown on her face. Remembering how to start a quest from playing ALO with everyone, I asked her a simple phrase.

"Is something wrong?"

"Actually, journeying swordsmen," the old lady said with a depressed stare. "My daughter…"

And that was when she told us of how her daughter was terribly ill, and that all the medicine in the village would not cure her. Only the «Ovule» of a predatory plant found somewhere in the forests outside the village could be made into a medicine powerful enough to cure her. She could not find any, since they are rare and difficult to find due to her busy schedule. If only there was a swordsman or two willing to help her, she would gladly trade it for a blade that had been passed down her family for generations.

I offered my assistance, and not long after that I heard Sinon agree as well. Her eyes were red and I could see a tear roll down her cheek, though her expression remained stoic. Papa told me that we needed to listen to the entire speech, or else the Quest would not be registered. Papa and Aunt Lisbeth said they had to learn that the hard way when they fell asleep listening to an old man going on about his history and some dragon during a quest to get some materials. They fell asleep and had to listen to the whole story again. Sure hope nothing like that happens to me soon.

When the «Quest Log» was updated, we both bid farewell to the lady and left to go to the forest. When we headed out, I was starting to get curious about the time. Half past seven, we had been playing around in the village for two whole hours! I ran towards the forest, leaving Sinon behind to chase after me.

"Hey, what are you going to do with your sword?" I ask when we reached the edge of the forest. "You're a spear-user, so that must mean that you won't use it, right?"

"Probably have to sell it," Sinon replied with a shrug. "Some money on the side couldn't hurt."

"Wow, you're getting the hang of this!" I cheered and started jumping, making Sinon blush and put her palm on her face in embarrassment.

When I started to take another step, I felt a hand grab my wrist. Looking at Sinon again, I realised that we forgot something in our haste to get here.

"Kirito-kun…" I muttered.

"We'll split up here. Meet back at the missus' house in two hours."

"Sure," I said before smiling mischievously "And what do you plan on doing with Kirito-kun if you find him, Sinon-san?"

"Help him and say that we were sent by Klein to assist him." Sinon said emotionlessly.

Damn straight! I guess her falling for Kirito right now is out of the question.

No longer able to think up of any jokes and/or insults, I finally remembered to start allocating our «Skill Points» and «Skill Slots» before bidding farewell to Sinon. In a matter of minutes, I had started to explore the forest. It was huge and the sun setting made it look real creepy. Sure, I've gone into dark and spooky forests before, both online and off. But now knowing that the threat of death is looming if I lose all of my «HP», the forest just seems… scarier.

We both had five «Skill Points». With those, I gave three to «SPD» and two to «STR». Sinon decided to go with two for «SPD», one for «STR» and two for «VIT». As for the skill slots, I chose «One-Handed Straight Sword» and «Searching», while Sinon went for «One-Handed Assault Spear» and «Hiding». When I saw all the skills Sinon chose, I couldn't help but be reminded of her Sniper form; a master of speed and precision, adept at hiding. That was her. I wonder… will she become the Ice Sniper once more after «SAO»?

As I thought about this, I realised that there was a strange hissing noise coming somewhere to my right. I took out my «Basic Sword», ready to do combat when a giant plant-like… THING appeared before me. The «Little Nepent». How the hell is this thing considered LITTLE?! This thing was a metre and a half tall!

"Oh, fuck it," I cursed with a bored expression, something I picked up from Uncle Klein and Aunt Lisbeth. "I've soloed bosses before."

I knew that I was tiny, the shortest kid in my class. Hell, even Himeko, Aunt Silica's daughter was taller than me! Himeko! Her entire family is short, for Heaven's sake! And she's probably a year younger, too! Shaking my head in annoyance, I made a rapid dash towards the monster and made several quick slashes through its… body? Taking the knockback feature to good use, I used the Sword Skill «Horizontal» to quickly cut off the smallest section of the «Little Nepent»; its stalk. Using a stabbing attack one final time, just for good measure, I watched as the «Little Nepent» disappeared in an array of bright red hexagons.

Death was always beautiful in-game, I had to admit.

"No «Ovule» here," I grumble.

"Well, that's why it has a higher rarity value, am I right?"

Instinctively, I turned around and pointed my sword at the newcomer. It wasn't Papa, obviously. If it was, I would have already lost half my HP by now. Instead, the person in front of me was a boy, probably older than me, with messy brown hair. He was wearing the same light leather armour that I bought from Horunka Village, only in white in contrast to my black. He even bought a buckler; something I had purposely didn't buy, since I cared little for defence. Sinon didn't buy it either, but I guess she didn't need it if she was going to become a ranged fighter.

"That was a brilliant fight just now!" the boy applauded. "I've never seen someone beat a «Little Nepent» so fast before, and the tutorial just ended too! Are you a «Beta Tester» or something?"

"Maybe you just haven't seen one since you're the only one here," I scoffed, my instant rivalry attitude against strangers quickly kicking in. "And sorry to say this, but I ain't no beta tester; just a plain ol' newbie."

"A newbie would never leave the «Starting City» on the first day and fight by herself at night, you know," the boy said with a knowing atmosphere as he brought his thumb and middle finger to his eyes, only to suddenly stop and put it back down. Guess he wore glasses in the real world. "You're either lying, or you're something else entirely."

"I'm a time traveller, coming from the year 2052. I'm here to destroy the future timeline and cause panic and mayhem wherever I go," I spoke. Hey, I was honest, right?

"Hehe, you're hilarious too," the boy laughed again. I feel my cheeks heat up. "Okay, time traveller. You're doing a Quest… the «Secret Medicine of the Forest» one, right? Why don't we team up for a while? That way, we could get done faster."

"Sure, I guess…" I muttered as a white pop-up window appeared, asking me if I wanted to accept his party invite. Casually clicking «Accept», I looked at his name… «Coper» huh?

'_I've never heard his name before... I guess nothing would go wrong if I party for a few hours…'_ I think to myself. If he was at all important to Papa's future, he would have mentioned his name at some point, right?

"Well, Kiriko," the boy, Coper, spoke "Should we get going? I'm almost at level 2 by the way."

"I'm about a quarter away from reaching level 3," I grinned, knowing I had won one challenge already, whether there was one or not. "Last one to level up pays for supper!"

The two of us were a machine, slaying murderous plant by murderous plant. At one point, I swear I could hear evil maniacal laughing coming from Coper. Or was that me? Well, I guess that would explain why he's looking at me as if I'm some kind of psychopath. Or worse, a Yandere.

About an hour must have passed since we started, and not even a single «Little Nepent» had an «Ovule». Hell, none of them even had a «Seed»! Throwing my hands up into the air in anger and sat down, grumbling. I looked at Coper, whose brown hair was swaying gently with the breeze. He smiled at me and I felt my cheeks heat up.

Oh, God, no. This is it, isn't it? That feeling Aunt Lisbeth kept telling me about ever since she met Papa. Swallowing my own saliva, I stood back up and walked away. If anything, I didn't want to end up like Aunt Lisbeth! She's a terrible influence, and she only married since Papa already married Mama. She lost her chance.

But there was that time Papa accidentally told me that he… and Aunt Lisbeth…

"ARGH!"

"Calm down!" Coper said to me while he backed away from me. "I know you're really pissed off since you couldn't get an «Ovule», but it's nothing worth screaming over."

"SHUT UP AND START FIGHTING!"

He took another step back, and my face heated up even more. Darn it! I slapped myself on both cheeks and turned around, ready to release my pent up stress at some poor «Little Nepent», but I instantly lost all my anger when I saw the «Little Nepents» that had appeared in front of me. One of them had a «Flower», meaning that it also contained the item I required to complete the quest. The other two flanking it, though…

They had «Seeds».

"Imagine our luck…" Coper said with a low whistle.

"Could we… wait for the other two to go away?"

"Not a good idea. I heard that if we left them for too long, the flowers would change into seeds."

"And attacking those seeds attracts every Little Nepent in a ten metre radius…"

I hate my luck sometimes.

"Here's an idea" Coper said as he turned to me "I'll distract the two with the seeds, while you go for the one with the seed. When you get it, you could come help me with the seed «Little Nepents»."

"Shouldn't I fight the ones with the seeds?" I questioned "I'm practically level four right now, and I'm way stronger than you could ever be. I could last much longer than-"

Before I had even finished that sentence, Coper had run off and made two «Horizontal» attacks at the «Little Nepents» which had seeds. As they were programmed, they grew aggressive and quickly turn to face him, attacking him as they did. But Coper was faster. He managed to dodge both attacks and jump backwards, earning him some free space to run off with both plant monsters.

Sighing audibly while cursing the boy to hell, I attacked the «Little Nepent» which had the flower and the two of us were locked in combat. I slashed it and hacked its body, its HP depleting very quickly. In a matter of seconds, the monster shattered in an array of beautiful red hexagons and I picked up the «Ovule» it dropped, storing it in my «Temporary Inventory».

"Yo, Coper!" I shout. "I'm coming for you!"

Finding him was easy enough; I just followed the sound of a sword slashing against… whatever it is these plant guys are made of. As I reach him, I draw my sword and getting into the stance for a «Slant» Sword Skill. Before I could execute the attack, I felt my body burn up. So what if he looked hot fighting those two monsters at once, this wasn't the time to start fawning over him!

But just as I shook my dizzying head, something… awful happened.

Coper did an attack which we both agreed to never use against «Little Nepents», especially if they had a seed. «Vertical». I could feel my face turning into one of complete shock as I saw the sword make contact with the seed, sending it flying off the stalk and onto the ground. It exploded, causing me to be knocked off the ground and onto my butt. I noticed a strange odour wafting in the air, and could swear that something was going to happen. Something bad… something _very_ bad.

Rustling and hissing surrounded me, making me look around in fear. My sword wielding arm felt numb, and I couldn't even make a grab for my sword anyway. My eyes locked with Coper's, and I finally understood what was going on.

"You… want to kill me, don't you?"

Coper made no reply as he just looked straight ahead at me. I can't believe this, I seriously can't believe this! He could die as well, that idiot! I looked at him and blinked, but he disappeared. I quickly realised what he had done and had to compliment him on his wisdom. «Hiding». He chose «Hiding» as his secondary Skill! His plan would have been perfect, if it didn't have one little flaw.

I'm a gamer, and I've faced worse odds before.

Fighting them was out of the question, so I quickly did the next thing I knew I was good at: Escaping. Remembering how easy it was to dodge the people back when I first came to the past, I started weaving around all the «Little Nepents» that had appeared. They attacked and struck me, but my focus on my Speed stat had made it possible to avoid most of the attacks. Not even a minute later, I escaped from being turned into live plant-feed.

"COPER!" I shouted, using the «Searching» skill, «Scan», to try and locate the traitorous bastard.

Since I was a higher level, I managed to find him after a few seconds. Those few seconds were crucial, as the «Little Nepents» were still on the move. With a quick movement, I dashed to the place where I saw Coper and slammed right into him. His cover blown, Coper looked at me with a shocked expression as I pinned his hands on the ground.

"Thanks for trying to «MPK» me, ass," I said with a malicious grin. "Lemme repay the favour!"

I could hear him scream, maybe pleading for forgiveness, but I shut off all my emotions. With an inhuman scream, I threw him headfirst into the group of plant monsters. His screams and wails echoed through the forest. As I watched his HP bar slowly deplete thanks to the Party feature, I realised something god awful.

He could really die.

I was going to be a murderer…

Before I could actually shout, getting ready to defeat the «Little Nepents» if anything just for my own conscience, his HP bar actually did touch the zero mark. A beautiful sound echoed, the sound of bells ringing harmoniously, and Coper disappeared in a blur of hexagons.

"No…" I silently whispered to myself. "NO!"

Jumping into the dispersing fray of «Little Nepents», I suddenly lost all control over my body. I only remembered slashing and cutting, feeling bits of code smack against my face. When the rage finally disappeared, I cocked my head slowly, looking at my HP bar.

Barely 5% remaining…

Looking at the spoils of Coper's death, his equipment, I silently cursed myself. Why did I have to do that? Force of habit, I guess. I was well known for killing off the players I hated back in almost every game I've played, but… God, I'm a murderer. Did my actions cause something to happen to the future?

I didn't even realise that I was crying, and I walked towards the area of «Horunka Village». I needed to give the seed to the woman who gave me the quest, and hopefully forget about this whole ordeal. But how could I? I just killed someone in cold blood. I would probably remember this for the next few weeks… maybe even the rest of my life. Papa did mention he's killed other players in this game, and would often scold me for PKing people in «ALO». He always looked really disappointed when he had heard I PK'd a player. Now I understand why.

I was filled with the desire to talk to my virtual sister. Maybe Yui-neesan would understand if I told her about it. The question is… is it even possible to contact her in while I'm in this game?

I decided to think about it later when I saw the lady's house. Pushing open the door, I thought that I would just give it to the lady, take my reward and get some shut eye. That was when two things happened. Two things that would mark today as the worst day in my life.

Sinon and Kirito have already arrived; no doubt they were successful in the Quest like I was. But Kirito… he was crying. The door to the sick girl's room was open and I could see Kirito crying at the edge of the sick girl's bed. Worse, Sinon… she was comforting him. If anyone could say "typical lovey-dovey anime scene", this would be an appropriate time.

The other thing that happened… I could say it was far worse than I thought. Just as I witnessed the 'scene', my body began to burn up. It was much worse than it did before when I was with Coper too. I gasped and fell on the floor, virtual sweat pouring out of my body. Impossible, you can't sweat in video games! I suddenly remembered something Papa told me the first time I played an MMO.

"_Be careful when trusting other Players. The first time I teamed up with someone to finish a Quest in SAO, he tried to MPK me._"

That person Papa was talking about… it was Coper, wasn't it? Then that means that all of this heat, it wasn't some kind of love at first sight. It was something worse… something that would affect the future. Something I shouldn't have done.

I tried to say something, to do anything but my body was unresponsive. In the end, I lay there; gasping for air as my body was no longer mine to control. I thought I heard footsteps coming towards me. Sinon? Kirito? I don't know. Before I could figure out who it was, consciousness slipped away from me.

* * *

**A/N Thanks, Krawling Khaos again!**


	5. I Don't Hear A Love Story

**2022. November 8, Horunka Village**

A blur.

That was all I could see when my eyes opened up.

A blur.

I could see shapes and colours drifting around the room that I was in. Was this even a room? Maybe I was in a cave or the forest. No, it can't be. The colours look like what a room should be like. I could even hear muffled voices echoing in my ears. Someone, no, two people were talking. Or was it three? I'm not even sure anymore.

The first thing that came to mind was trying to get up, so I forcefully push myself from my resting spot. Too late, I realised that it was a terrible idea. I could feel my body burn in pain and agony, but I can't remember why. Was I attacked by some random fire-breathing dragon or something? Was I caught in a volcanic explosion?

The answer to that question never came, but I did remember something. You can't get hurt inside an MMO. You could lose «HP» and get knocked back, but you never actually feel the pain. Papa once said that the only time he felt physical pain was when the «Pain Absorption Meter» was set lower than the usual 10.

Another thing I realised was that… I can't remember. Seriously, I don't remember anything that happened for a few hours, probably somewhere around the time I started hunting «Little Nepents». Did I get the ovule? I hope so. I don't want to waste hours doing a quest that is seemingly impossible to turn into your favour.

"Urgh…" I tried to speak, but only managed to groan.

The burning sensation that I felt was dying down, and I could finally see clearly again. With that, my mind started clearing up. Maybe I could remember what happened yesterday again, too!

Waiting…

Waiting…

"Guess… not…" I slowly muttered to myself, though my body does seem calmer now.

Just as I was about to raise my hand in an attempt to open up the «Player Window», I felt something warm wrap itself around me. It felt soft and tender, like a silk scarf. For a second, I was reminded of Mama hugging me dearly with both her arms when I was crying back at the future. It took me a while to realise that the thing that wrapped around me really was a pair of arms.

And those arms belonged to Sinon.

"FWAH!"

"Glad to see you're okay" Sinon said with a bitter smile "You gave us quite a shock there when you fainted all of a sudden"

"Fainted? I… Wait, 'we'?"

"Mm, fainted" said another voice, a voice I was too accustomed to whether I liked it or not "You had less than 5% of your «HP» and you were out for about two days. Your whole body was burning up, too, like you had a fever. Since we're in an «MMORPG» that doesn't support pain like that or even allows players to get in-game fevers, my best guess is that something is happening to your real body."

"Thanks…" I muttered "Kirito-kun…"

Shaking my head a little bit, I quickly got up, but promptly landed on the floor face-first. Sinon extended a hand to help me up, but I quickly covered up my fail by laughing and swatting away the hand. I kept on laughing, hoping that the other two players would dismiss my fluke, I got up with some difficulty.

"Just saying" I continued laughing "I didn't fall down, I was simply attacking the floor!"

"R-Right…" Sinon sighed, but smiled kindly

Still laughing (I guess both of the Players in the room are feeling _very_ awkward right now), I raised my right hand and did the motion of opening my Player Window. The laugh died down and I checked my stats. I shut up for real this time.

For some reason, I was at level 5 and was getting close to reaching level 6. This was impossible. And freaky. Really, _really_ freaky. Last time I checked, I was only at level 2. Going up four levels in just one night, that was like getting the «Chain EXP» bonus for continuously fighting monsters non-stop. Using some mental calculations, I realised that I must have fought at least 20 Little Nepents, all by myself.

«Chain EXP» is a nifty little feature that Kayaba Akihiko implemented in SAO, though it isn't really well known. If players were to engage in battle with numerous monsters continuously, the «EXP» they gain would be doubled every time. The sole reason why not many people knew about this was because fighting multiple monsters with the threat of death if a person loses all of their HP is like a suicide attempt. Even Papa only found out about it by accident.

Man, I wish my maths was this good in school.

I looked at my future Papa, who was standing calmly at one side of the room. I know that deep down, he was struggling to stop himself from slapping his face at my stupidity. I then glanced at Sinon, who stood beside me with a kind and noble smile. Their similar personalities, manners, even looks seriously make it almost impossible to stop me and my friends from calling them a couple. Now, I'm seriously hating past-Kiriko for being such an asshole. Right now, whatever I do might really make this end up like that one fan fic Himeko, Kasumi (Aunt Lyfa's daughter) and I wrote about them.

Come to think of it, who the hell actually writes fan fics about their own parents?

"Is something wrong?" Sinon asked me when I failed to actually say something stupid "You're zoning out over there"

"Huh? Oh, um…" I stuttered "Just… out of curiosity~ What level are you two on?"

There was a slight pause as both Sinon and Kirito looked at each other, having some sort of freaky mental conversation, then they looked at me again.

"Three, though we're almost reaching four" Sinon said to me

"That high?!" I pretended to look surprise. Pfft, yeah right. I suck at lying.

"And you are at…?" Kirito asked, taking a step closer

"It-It doesn't matter!"

Sinon and Kirito shared another glance before shrugging it off.

"Well, as long as you're safe, I guess" Sinon said as she patted my back "So do you have that ovule? It would be best if we could exchange it for the «Anneal Blade» as soon as possible"

Nodding my head when I saw the item in my «Inventory», we left the comfort of the room to go back to the missus' house. When we left the building, I realise that it was an inn. Buying a room to stay for the night in an inn wasn't really that hard, though doing so this early in the game could spell bankruptcy. I looked at Sinon again, who had her «Basic Spear» sheathed at her back. She must have sold her Anneal Blade, since she isn't a sword-user.

Looking around town, I realised that there was now a handful of players could now be seen walking in and out of the buildings. In the two days that I was unconscious, the beta testers and some brave individuals must have braved the terrifying outer area to reach this town. I wonder, how many more people have died these two days?

Five minutes of walking later, we reach the house of the village missus that gave us the quest. Since I was the only one that hasn't finished it, I knock on the door and announce my presence.

"Yo! Hope your kid isn't dead yet, lady!"

I heard Kirito groan. Well, sorry~

Walking towards the lady and initiating the conversation to finish the quest, I receive the «Anneal Blade» and quickly change my «equipments». As I did so, I realised that the missus was doing something with the ovule I had just given her. She mixed it inside the pot she had been cooking with and started stirring it. The action was preset, but to me it seemed like she was doing this all on her own. I guess that playing MMOs in the future made me think that.

She then took out a cup and poured the contents of the pot into it. Looking at Kirito and Sinon again, I could see that my future Papa had his head down while Sinon seemed to be patting his back. Damn it! What happened when I was out cold?!

As I watched the NPC enter a room, I decided to follow her in. What I saw inside was something so depressing, my tears would have cried.

A young girl, probably seven or eight years old, rested on a bed. Her frail form looked weak, which made me realise just how dangerous the illness she had really was. It amazed me to no end knowing just how much effort was given to making the scene look believable enough.

Upon seeing her mother, the girl made a faint. Then – she looked at me and another kind smile was passed. The NPC tag that was attached to her stated that her name was «Agatha», an old but beautiful name indeed.

My heart exploded from the overload of "daww"s

While stroking Agatha's back gently with her right hand, the mother sat down on the chair next to the bed, and spoke.

"Agatha. Here, the traveling swordsman got some medicine for you from the forest. If you drink this, you'll get better for sure."

She made the girl take a hold of the cup that her left hand held.

"...Okay" Agatha nodded with a cute voice, and holding on to the cup with her small hands, she gulped it down.

What did I expect to happen? Maybe for the girl to suddenly reveal a HP bar that quickly rose back to green, or a brilliant golden light to shine upon the girl. None of them happened, though. Still, I swear some colour returned to her cheeks.

As the beautiful scene was playing before my eyes, my vision blurred once more. Thinking that I might black out again, I started to rub my eyes with my gloved hand. When I opened them again, I saw a vision play before my eyes. Sinon – caressing a crying Kirito in front of the bed.

A memory! But… what memory? This must have happened before I blacked out and lost those few hours' worth of memories.

I stepped outside the room, waving goodbye to the girl. She waved back at me and thanked me, and I could truly believe that the girl might not be an NPC at all. Now, where are Sinon and Kirito? Ah, there they are. They're sitting by the dining table, though Kirito's face looked rather solemn. I walked towards them as the scene of Kirito crying played in my mind.

"What happened between the two of you?" I asked bluntly

"Eh?!"

"Pa- Kirito-kun, you cried two days ago when you were in the room, right?" I was on a roll! "What? Did Sinon-san reject your love or something?"

"It's nothing" Sinon spoke as she tried to keep her expression calm, though she was sweating bullets "It would be best if we just forget about it…"

**2022. November 6, Horunka Village**

======SINON======

"Thanks for helping with the mission, Kirito" I said to the person beside me

"It's nothing…" was his monotone response

I released a heavy sigh as I considered my situation. Kiriko was right, this person was very strong indeed. I could sense the air of power that he radiated, a power that lay dormant as he walked quietly beside me.

It took a while to get both ovules, but I guess that it was worth it. Kirito originally declined my offer to help him, but after some talking I managed to persuade him. In the end, we both managed to kill many «Little Nepents» and avoid deathly situations. I congratulated him when he reached level 3 and he made a quick nod and a kind smile when he saw me level up as well.

"We're splitting up after this, okay?" Kirito said quietly even though we were the only two players around.

"Hmm? But…" I started "I promised a friend that I'd help you. Kiriko-san, roo. You know, in case anything happens…"

"You don't even know me" Kirito said matter-of-factly

"I've never had many friends before" I said quietly "Just being your acquaintance is quite a big step for me…"

Kirito looked at me once more with his deep black eyes. The first time I saw those eyes, I swear that he looked like a professional warrior, who was prepared to face any danger. Now, he looked kind. I don't really understand why, but I get the feelin that he understands my situation.

When we entered into the home of the missus that gave us the quest, we both completed the «Quest». Kirito helped me to respond to her sentences, choosing the perfect words to reply to all of the woman's preset phrases as if he has gone through this before. I slapped my face. Of course he did, he's a beta tester.

When he was done, the woman started to do another programmed action. We both watched quietly as she mixed the ovule of the Little Nepent into the pot she was stirring, then she poured its contents into a cup. She walked to a room nearby and entered it, and I figured that that must be her ill daughter's room.

"Back during the beta test" Kirito said to me, surprising me. He never spoke on his own accord before "that room was system locked"

He walked to the room and slowly walked in. Maybe he was testing it or something, but he entered nonetheless. Not having much else left to do, I followed him.

The room we entered was small, maybe a little smaller than my own room. On the bed was a small girl - the daughter of the woman we had just helped. We listened as the lady told her daughter about how we had helped to find the ovule. It surprised me a bit. Was the system capable of knowing if more than one person finished the quest together, and changed the NPC's speech pattern to follow the flow?

When the child finished drinking the medicine, she passed the cup back to her mother. The child, Agatha, looked at us with sincere eyes and smiled once more.

"Thank you, onii-chan, onee-chan"

I covered my mouth as the surprise came over me. The kindness and purity that she gave out sounded too good to be true. I realised that my eyes were watering too. The scene was truly a beautiful one indeed. I wonder; will the games of the future look and feel so realistic that we can't even differentiate them anymore?

I was about to ask Kirito if we should leave when I heard a sob escape through his lips. Turning to him, I watched as he slowly kneeled down to the floor and held the covers to cover his face. It was not enough, though. I could see that he was crying. Was the girl's actions too realistic for him? Or… was it something else?

"What's the matter, onii-chan?" Agatha said curiously

Kirito kept crying, and I was at a loss as to what I should do. Honestly saying, I was never too close to that many people, so I have never faced a situation like this before. After a few seconds of racking my brain, I finally kneeled down beside him. I placed an arm around his back and held his left hand. I had no idea what to say, so I kept silent.

The silence was calming and quite wonderful as well. I did not know how long we sat there, but I didn't really mind. After a while, I realised that Kirito's sobs had stopped and that he wasn't crying anymore. I didn't even realise that the lady had left, leaving the two of us and Agatha in the room together. That was when realisation struck me.

If people saw us together like this, they might think that we were a couple. Rumours would even spread among the players, and then I would never get to walk about without people talking about me behind my back. Sure, it wasn't as bad as in real life, but still…

I was about to finally let go of Kirito when I heard the sound of someone falling. It came from outside, making both me and Kirito perk up in surprise. The door was wide open too! I didn't even have time to blush when I realised that the sound came from a person sprawled on the floor, seemingly unconscious but panting heavily.

It was Kiriko.

I didn't even need to tell Kirito, yet he was already up running towards Kiriko. I got up as well, ready to help the person that I had taken into my house back in reality. However, just as I reached the door, Agatha said something else to me.

"Good luck, onee-chan!" she said innocently "Please take care of onii-chan"

Was she really just an NPC?

When I reached the place where Kiriko had fainted, Kirito was already trying to carry her. I helped as well, but nearly dropped her when I felt how hot her body was. She was burning up. She was so hot, it was unnatural.

We managed to bring her into an inn, paying for it by using the money we obtained from fighting Little Nepents and by selling my Anneal Blade. We hurriedly placed her on a bed and made sure that she was comfy, though her body temperature was still high. I looked at Kirito who had a calm expression on once the panic had subsided.

"Thank you…" I managed to say through panicked pants "For helping my friend, that is…"

"It's nothing" Kirito answered

We both sat in the room in silence. I don't know what to say, and I bet that Kirito didn't have much to say either. In the end, I decided to tell Kirito that he was free to leave. After all, I needed to take care of Kiriko and Kirito probably had things to do.

"Hey-"

"Back on the other side…" Kirito mused with his head facing the ground, cutting off my speech "I have a sister…"

I didn't know what was happening, but I allowed Kirito to continue talking. I would have stopped him, but I know that he was trying to relieve the burden from his chest. That was something I was used to doing, though I could never find anyone to actually go to for these matters.

"A long time ago, my sister... Suguha caught a cold, and stayed in bed. My father was appointed overseas as always and my mother was unable to cancel a trip that she had to make to the company, hence I was in charge of nursing her for a mere two hours. That was, during elementary school..."

"Honestly, I did think of it as a little bothersome, but I didn't leave her alone to go play, and wiped down Suguha's sweat, changing the cooling patch on her forehead. When I did that, that girl suddenly said that she wanted to drink some ginger tea."

"I called up my mother, and asked for its recipe. It just needed ginger extract and honey to be dissolved in hot water, a procedure more simple than even cookery in Aincrad if done carelessly, but to me who had never even dabbled in cooking, it was of extremely high difficulty. After carrying the ginger tea, made while getting my own fingers grated when I used the grater, to Suguha's bedside, that girl who's usually full of spiteful language, looked up to me with a meek face-"

Kirito made another sobbing noise, probably from the pain of the memory he was reliving. He wanted to continue talking, but I shushed him. We had just seen Agatha, who was sick in bed. Now Kiriko, the closest person to me at the moment, was lying on a bed and burning up. Perhaps these two events were too similar to his sister, Suguha's past predicament. Maybe, seeing it happen right before his eyes had caused Kirito to actually break down.

"We should rest right now" I spoke to Kirito silently "Tomorrow, I'll help with Kiriko. You could… leave… if you want…"

"Thanks, Sinon" Kirito said, looking at me again

I did the motion of moving my right hand down, opening up my «Player Window». I navigated around and finally found what I was looking for. I pressed it and typed a few letters before pressing the accept button. As soon as I did that, a white window appeared in front of Kirito.

**«Sinon» would like to add you as a friend.**

**O Accept X Decline**

"I only have Kiriko-san and Klein in my friend list" I admitted with a smile "It would be nice if we… could be friends"

Kirito looked at the screen questioningly, probably wondering if it was a good idea. Finally, he moved his finger over to the blue 'O' and pressed it. He then rested his back on the chair and released a big sigh.

"I guess I could stay for a little while" Kirito said calmly "Good to know you're «Friends» with Klein as well"

I smiled and looked at Kiriko, whose heavy breathing was worrying me. I hope that she'll be okay…

**2022. November 8, Horunka Village**

======KIRIKO======

I swear, these two are hiding something from me.

Knowing fully well that the two of them won't tell me anything even if I took off all my clothes and danced for them, I got up and stretched my body. The chronometer said that it was a little bit past 8 o'clock in the morning, so I guess that we could head out for breakfast or something. Speaking of breakfast, I'm starving!

"Come on, breakfast's on me!" I shouted and opened the door, before promptly crashing into someone "GAK! Watch where you're going!"

"Cheh, you should listen to your own advice" the person in front of me with a snarky tone before looking up

It was a girl with auburn hair. She looked rather sneaky and rough, making me guess that she wasn't someone I'd trust my money with. She wasn't someone I would call tall, being probably a head shorter than Kirito. What ticked me off was that somehow, she was still taller than me.

I was about to continue our argument once more when the girl looked behind me and yelled in surprise. She promptly pushed me aside and ran up to Kirito, surprising both of the people behind me.

"Ki-bou!" the girl said, ending her sentence with a weird nasal inflation "It's been a while!"

"Ah, Argo?!" Kirito sputtered

"EH?! You know this girl?!" I shouted, surprised to have never heard about such an annoying girl in any of Papa's stories.


	6. I Can't Believe I Could Lecture People

**2022. December 2, Horunka Village**

"Kyaah!"

My loud off-key battle cry echoed around the cave as I unleashed a sword skill upon the unsuspecting «Ruin Kobold Trooper». Quickly jumping away before the cooldown period takes over my body, I look at my partner and gave a nod. He seemed to understand my simple gesture and ran towards the lizardman. With a glow of his sword, which is more-or-less similar with mine, he slashed the opposing creature and it stopped.

With a dazzling array of polygons, the monster dispersed.

"Ahh~ That was easy!" I said cheerfully, walking up to my partner in crime as I inspected the EXP and Col I had attained from the battle

"You're way too reckless, Kiriko" said the teenage boy known as Kirito, destined to be my future father "But I have to admit, your attacks are very powerful, not to mention precise. Sometimes, I forget that you weren't an original «Beta tester»"

'_Years' worth of gaming and playing VRMMOs really does pay off_' I think to myself, but couldn't tell Kirito. After all, VRMMOs were jut created. Hell, I'm playing the first one right now!

I invited him to go look for another enemy, hoping to reach somewhere around level 15 by the end of the day. It seemed weird, being levels higher than my other party members. If only I could remember that short span of memory I had forgotten about, things would have been much easier to understand. My sudden burst in «Experience Points» would have been more understandable too.

Why was a selfish and rude «Solo player» following me (Yes, he was following me!) again? Well, it was all Sinon's idea. After meeting with Argo and her finishing the very quest I had just completed, Sinon thought of the four of us forming a party together. Of course, everyone else rejected at first. We had just met Argo, and Kirito was a solo player. Not to mention I wanted to escape from causing trouble with the time-space continuum. However, her stoic expression and calm, commanding tone soon swayed us and we soon found ourselves partying for about a month together.

Now, Sinon was a loner. I know that. But with her being my favourite aunt, I could see why she wanted to party up. Strength in numbers, as they say. That, and the fact that she was extremely lonely. Maybe this was her way of escaping her loneliness, by putting on a tough persona and making new friends in a world that isn't even real.

A month had passed since «SAO» started, and the four of us were climbing up the ladder for strongest Players. Today, we were dungeon crawling. We decided to split up before entering the dungeon to train ourselves. I went along with Kirito, while Sinon followed Argo. This way, it would be easier for us to beat the First floor boss when we're a high enough level.

Argo

Who was she? Surely Papa would have told me a story of her. He told me a lot of things, some which made even Mama mad. He even told me how he and Aunt Lisbeth had to spend the night in a «Dragon's Nest» when they fell in by accident, causing Mama to ultimately cook less food for Papa's dinner.

"Ne, Kirito-kun?" I looked up at the boy

"What?"

"Have you figured it out yet?"

The glance that Kirito gave me was simple, yet it explained everything. We both knew what I was talking about, and it was «Argo The Rat». For some reason, she instantly recognised Kirito when we met unceremoniously at «Horunka Village». Yet, at that time, we all used our real world faces and Kirito had been sure that he did not tell her his «Player ID», not yet that is.

"No" was his direct answer "But Argo's always been like that. I think that she must have snooped around a bit and found out"

"Plausible" I said and shrugged

As we continued our trek through the dungeon, the distinct sound of metal clashing could be heard echoing throughout the cave. Sinon? No. Can't be. Her deadly «accuracy» would have made sure that all of her strikes with her «Camlann Spear» would hit the chinks of the armour, making little to no sound and giving her a «Critical Hit» most of the time. Argo? No. She's too stealthy to actually cause this much ruckus.

"Oi, let's check it out" I looked at my future dad with a curious expression. Someone was making some major damage, and I wanted to see!

"No thanks" He said and waved me off, heading away from the sound

Before he could even take five steps, Kirito dropped onto the floor as I dragged him along by his feet. Yes, this was supposed to be almost impossible to pull of. No, I don't give a damn about physics. I could see from his face that he was reluctant to follow, and would have been better off not following me around.

"That wasn't a question now, was it?" I said with a dark expression, though it caused no sort of emotion from Kirito

When we reached the source of the fighting, I could only gasp at the beauty of it all.

A shooting star. That's the best way to describe what I was watching. A mysterious character, covering his body in a dark blood red cloak, swiftly took out a «Ruin Kobold Trooper» with his rapier. Strike after strike connected until the red humanoid lizard was nothing more but a stream of particles. Whoever this person was, he was freaking epic.

"That player…" Kirito started talking

Holy shit, was he going to compliment someone for once?!

"He's too reckless"

I slapped my own face. Typical of Kirito. Honestly, how is this guy my cool and cam father?

"What's so bad about him? He was kicking ass just now" I tried to defend the mysterious player's pride, but I was sure that I was heading nowhere. Not with Kirito.

"No, look" he said as he pointed to the cloaked Player, who was resting at the side of the cave due to fatigue "He's wasting too many movements, and he's not focusing on his «Defence»"

"So? «Overkill»is best kill"

"Not in this game, Kiriko" Kirito reminded me "That monster only had a few dots of HP left, and just dropping it onto the floor was enough to kill it. But that rapier user, she practically wasted a single sword skill to take it out. If another monster appeared behind him, he would have been dead by now"

I looked at the mysterious rapier user Player person again, and I guess I had to give credit to Kirito. He was a gamer through and through. Even in the future, Papa analyses anything and everything there is to a game, while I just run around with a sword and a gun. Sure, people could call him obsessed, but it's still amazing nonetheless.

I looked at the rapier user again, wondering if I should leave now since he seems to be doing well on his own. That was when I started… noticing things. His cloak was tattered and deteriorated, already crumbling from its lack of durability. Even the weapon he was holding was rusted, probably on the verge of cracking soon. The armour, all of it, was dirty and battle-worn. If I didn't know better, I'd say that this person had just been through hell.

No, something similar, at least. This person, he was practically on the verge of death.

Before I could speak up, the rapier user suddenly collapsed in a jumbled up heap. Without even turning to Kirito for guidance, I jumped at the chance and ran straight for the Player. Feeling his head, I could tell that it wasn't a cold like what I had gone through a month ago. It was fatigue, mental exhaustion. I know it so well from playing «Brain Burst» for months in-game without rest.

I lifted the Player's head and started slapping him mercilessly, hoping that he would wake up. When that didn't work, I opted to take off his cloak. Pfft, it's as good as gone now, anyway. Clutching it with my hand, I forcefully threw it away and looked at his- HOLY SHIT!

Now, I've been known for doing stupid things, and I've also been known to easily get surprised, but this one… This takes the cake. Underneath that blood red cloak, was the beautiful face of a teenage girl with long auburn locks. Her cute face was in a tired sleep as it was lost to the world. Wow, for some reason, her sleeping formed terrified me.

The person in my hands, was «Asuna». Yuuki Asuna, also known to me as Kirigaya Asuna…

My mother.

"Ah, so it was a girl…" Kirito suddenly said, making me squeak and jump

"We-We've gotta bring her to safety!" I panicked, not sure what to do now.

Papa told me this story before, I was sure of it. The day that Mama met Papa. Papa said… Uh… Papa told me that… Mama was overkilling monsters in a dungeon… I think. Then, he… s-saved her… right?

"Mm" Kirito responded calmly.

Calmly. CLAMLY?! How could he stay calm at a time like this?!

Without putting much thought into my action, I picked up past-Mama by her arms and practically dragged her to the exit. I heard Kirito shout at me from behind, and he must have come to help because at one point, I felt past-Mama, no, Asuna get lighter.

We reached the clearing outside the dungeon and I uncouthly dropped Asuna, making her head knock against a random rock that was hilariously placed underneath her. After I regained my breath, I looked at Kirito who was glaring at me.

"Oi… Were you… trying to kill her?"

"EEH?!" I shouted "No way! I was- I was trying to save her!"

"Dragging her to the exit would slowly decrease her HP, I'm sure you knew that"

I mentally slapped myself. Of course!

"At any rate, we'd better find her somewhere even safer for her to rest right now. We could ask her the details later"

I nodded solemnly and opened up my «Player Window». Looking at my «Friends List», I pressed Sinon's name and typed her a short «PM», telling her to meet us at the rendezvous point. When that was done, I helped Kirito move Asuna to the same spot.

It didn't take long for Sinon and Argo to appear, and they were quite surprised when they saw Asuna. Before they even managed to ask, I lifted my palm at them and spoke in a lame voice.

"It's a long story, please don't ask…"

Sinon, who had always respected my privacy, easily complied. Argo turned to Kirito and started conversing with him in hushed whispers. From what I could hear, it had something to do with his «Anneal Blade».

"So, what level are you on?" I said to break the heavy silence "I just reached level 14 myself, you know"

"Twelve" Sinon answered matter-of-factly

"Uhh… So, any plans for the Boss Fight meeting this afternoon?" I said once again

"None at the moment"

I was left glancing at the ground as if it was the most interesting thing in the world. Somehow, I knew that this back-breaking silence wouldn't leave until Sinon knew about Asuna, and I'm practically at a loss right now. Should I tell her? Well, yeah, but wouldn't it be better if she just woke up right now?

"…Tell me when a female player wants to buy my information. I will buy her information then" I heard Kirito's voice coming out rather rudely

"As if you're not surrounded by enough girls, Ki-bou" Argo spoke annoyingly, coupled with a sinister but creepy laugh

I looked at Sinon again, who was stroking her spear with a cold expression. She was like this for a while, and I honestly think that it's starting to creep me out. Sure, her gaming persona was different than when she was on the «other side», but now it's even harder to read her. Somehow, I know that she's thinking about her mother. We were already trapped here for a month, and there was no news at all from the outside world. Who knows how Sinon's mother was feeling right now?

And so, our little group started to interact with each other. Kirito was trying to avoid most of the topics, though. I know it must be weird to be the only guy surrounded by four cute girls (and no, I am not proud or anything). Sinon was cold for most of the conversation, too. That left me and Argo in an insult match worthy of the Gods. Well… probably worthy.

"Pfft, like you could actually beat me in a fight, Squeaky"

"I'd like to see you try, Chihuahua"

"What did you call me, Shrimp paste?!"

"A Chihuahua, my dear Ironing Board"

Before I could draw out my weapon, a faint groan could be heard. We all turned towards the sound, which turned out to be Asuna herself. As she slowly stirred, she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and stared at us blankly. After blinking a couple of times, her eyes suddenly widened and she jumped up, reaching for the rapier that was no longer in its sheath.

"Wha-What's going on?!" Asuna shouted

"Greetings, Earthling" I said and raised my hand in a spock salute "We are the Gamerorians from the planet of Villageus"

"That joke was bad, Kiriko, and you should feel bad" Argo interjected as she hid her face behind that god damned cloak of hers

As I started to get into another quarrel with my lifelong rival, Asuna surveyed the scene before her. I swear, she must think of us as the most confusing bunch of misfits she's ever seen. At least, through the corner of my eye, I could see the Kirito was trying to smile, probably to set off a good vibe to Asuna.

"You were knocked out in the dungeon and we found you, so we thought that it was best to bring you out here to rest" Kirito said calmly, realising that no one else was going to explain the situation to her "These people here are my party members"

Asuna looked at us, and I was taken aback when I saw her eyes. I know Mama. Her eyes always radiated light and warmth whenever I look at them. But these eyes… They were cold. When I look into them, it felt like all I could feel was a black hole, sucking away my joy. She was depressing, and she wanted others to feel sad as well.

"Why…" Asuna muttered quietly

"Sorry, could you… speak up, please?" I tried my best to sound tactful

"Why…"

"What's the matter?" Argo was the next to ask. Surely, even she was starting to get uncomfortable

"Why did you save me?"

Her penetrating glare struck Kirito, and if it wasn't for his training with keeping his cool whenever he's around me, he would have flinched. Instead, Kirito looked over at his three party members with a rather determined expression, and then turned back to Asuna.

"It wasn't like we were going to leave you in that dungeon to die!" Kirito said "The Monsters would have «respawned» by the time you wake up"

"Then just let me die!"

The silence was so heavy right now, the weighing scale broke.

"...Everyone will die in the end anyway." Asuna said in a hoarse voice "In just one month, 2000 people died. But still, not even the first floor has been cleared. It is not possible to clear this game. Where and how you die, early... or late, is the only difference..."

I had to applaud Asuna's logic, no matter how twisted it sounded. It had been a month, and we were still on the First floor. If things kept going like this, it would take one hundred months to actually clear the entire game. And that would take… Um… A few years to clear. However, I knew better. Papa already told me that the game would be cleared in two years. Whatever reason behind Asuna's logic was instantly thrown away as I remembered this.

"And your point is?" I said with a rather cruel underlying tone as I tried not to sound like a cruel girl to my future mother "Yeah, it took us a while to even clear the 20 floors in the dungeon, so what? We'll finish the game, whether you like it or not"

"And if you don't?" Asuna said non-chalantly "If you fail and die, you would have died in a world not even your own. Even as we speak, we are losing the precious time we have in the real world. Time that we're never going to get back. We have real lives, you know? We have families! And we are throwing it away to live in some fantasy game!"

I had no way of answering that. And by the looks of it, not even Kirito was showing any signs of wanting to fight with the pessimistic girl. Well, good on him. The one thing a guy can't win against is a pissed off girl. And Asuna is one hell of a demon right now. Is she on her period or something? I saw that Argo was about to speak up when-

"I fail to see the logic in your argument"

Sinon spoke as she lowered her spear, looking at Asuna with stone cold eyes. However, these eyes were different than Asuna's lifeless ones. They looked hard and distant, like she was in a faraway land.

"You claim that we have lost our time in the real world, yet we are still living. Living in this world. Perhaps it isn't the best time to start blaming life for how cruel it is, and start trying to live it. And your family? What do you think we're trying to do? We also have families, and we love them very much. If anything, we are working hard to clear this game so we could see them again"

Sinon's expression stayed calm, though I could see that she was determined about this. Kirito suddenly opened his mouth as well, and joined Sinon in her lecture.

"If you want to know, most of those deaths were the Player's own doing"

Asuna looked at Kirito with a confused expression.

"Suicide" Argo said blatantly "Some of those players were so horror-stricken that they were willing to commit suicide to escape the game. In the end, this is a test of wits. Those that don't have enough guts die first, while those that preserve live on. So, where are you on this scale?"

I could feel that Asuna was confused, thinking hard on what we have just told her. I wonder, what effect was this bringing onto the future? If I recall correctly, Kirito was a Solo player. He would have given her a short speech on life, but that was it. What all of us have told her, it was probably more than what she would have expected.

"We all have our own way of surviving in this world" Sinon said finally, then added "We're going back to town, they're going to hold a meeting to discuss the strategy to defeat the First floor boss at 4pm. It would be best if you could come show your face at the meeting"

Somehow, I expected this of Sinon. In the end, she would always try to invite that new person along. It was her loner attitude, I guess. And on the internet, you could be anyone you wanted. I remember the story that Papa told about how she instantly accepted his request to help find some good weapons and armour when they first met. In the real world, it was practically impossible to see her like this.

"Alright!" I shouted at the top of my lungs "I guess it's time to head back. Who's up for a-"

*THUD*

And that was when the heat and pain came, making me drop to the ground in writhing agony.


	7. I Made My Papa Become A Pervert

**2022. December 2, Tolbana**

Waking up to the sight of Argo's face wasn't really high on my to-do list. Hell, it wasn't even there in the first place.

"Cheh. I knew that you were pathetic, but I didn't really expect _that_ pathetic" her annoying voice spoke as soon as my eyes adjusted to the light

"Shut up"

Pushing Argo aside, I try to remember what had happened. Luckily for me, I seem to have had no memory lapses this time. When I checked my «chronometer», I realised that only about half an hour had passed since I blacked out. Well, at least it was better than last time. I may not really remember last time anyway, but I was sure I was out for a few days.

_Mama_

The sudden reminder that I had just met my own soon-to-be mother was a shock. Sure, I was messing up all of time-space and I wouldn't be surprised if a strange man in a big blue box suddenly appeared to fix everything up, but this… Well, I didn't want to interfere with this. Mama's love for Papa. If that never happens, what will happen to me? Would I start to fade away from existence or would I become a wandering soul without a real world to go to.

"Oi, are you even listening?" Argo asked as she flicked me on the forehead. Hard

Thank Cardinal for the «Area Protection Code».

As I started another argument with Argo, my mind was wandering towards Asuna and Kirito. Once again, I could feel the tension and the terror of working in an alien environment build up within me. What's going to happen now? Well, I guess I shouldn't worry about that so much. After all, Mama and Papa always said that they were meant for each other. If anything, they should get lovey-dovey real soon.

"You don't even drink your milk, runt!" Argo was still trying to win the argument

"MILK IS THE POISON OF MANKIND!" I rebutted

As our verbal battle continued, Sinon walked into the room and sat beside Argo, observing our little dispute. I could bet my entire life savings that she was probably wondering how she came to be good friends with both of us, and then I'll probably lose all the money I just won when Argo manages to trick me… again.

So, that would make three girls just hanging around the living room of a house we bought together with a boy. As I managed to return another one of Argo's crazy insults, I realised a problem. A problem so big, even Voyeur would have seen it. In fact, I bet that that strange man in a big blue box would come running towards this location right now if he did exist!

Kirito… Papa… was currently living with three girls. Sure, anyone who thought that either me or Argo had a thing for him were probably just trying too hard to ship us, but he's at wonderful terms with Sinon, even if it seems to be a platonic friendship. A girl like Asuna, who was all deredere for Kirito, would obviously see this as a sign of competition. Well, no biggie. I just have to make sure that Asuna doesn't get any strange ideas.

"Hey, Sinon-san" I asked, ignoring Argo's next insult "What happened to Asuna after I was knocked out?"

("Hey, are you listening?!")

"Don't talk about you falling unconscious like it was natural" Sinon sounded genuinely worried for me "You got everyone worried sick, you know. Even Asuna. And if you're wondering where she went, she went out to buy some extra armour and food, though Kirito's following her. She's not in the right state of mind to actually walk around by her lonesome"

("Oi, I'm still talking!")

I grinned a creepy Cheshire cat grin as I imagined the next few scenarios. Right now, the two of them were alone, and together. If anything, this was a great way to start off their relationship! Now, I just have to make sure nothing else fucks up with their love life, and it should be smooth sailings from then on.

("I bet you just can't hear me because you're too short for my voice to reach, ironing board")

I threw a cushion at Argo and continued to talk with Sinon. A few seconds later, when Argo got back up, I threw another cushion. When she got back up, I tried to throw another one at her, but Argo seemed to have disappeared. The next thing I knew, she was behind me and holding a vase over my head. I would have died there and then if it wasn't for the «Area Protection Code».

"Um… Hello?"

The new voice made all three heads turn towards that general direction. There, standing by the doorway, was a beautiful girl in white armour. Her long hazelnut hair, which should have been beautiful and smooth, looked downright dishevelled and sad. That just made me wonder, just how long did she go without any proper healthcare?

I considered what to say without hurting her feelings much, but Sinon beat me to the chase.

"You look terrible" she said matter-of-factly

"T-That's because-" Asuna stuttered as she tried to fix her reputation

"We have a bath with hot water" Sinon continued to say "If you want, you're free to use it"

Asuna's eyes perked up as soon as the word "bath" was mentioned. If anything, she looked like a cat that was given a can of catnip. If she had cat ears, they would be perking up right now in joy. Since there were only girls here right now, she must have felt okay to act slightly pampered right now.

"Did you say… bath?"

We told her the direction of the bath and watched as she happily went over to the said room. It made me laugh. I know how Mama said that she always liked taking a bath, and that she had a rather funny event with Papa regarding the bath when they first met.

Wait… Shit. Kirito wasn't here now…

"Typical of you, Sin-chi" Argo said as she placed her arms on my head "So cool and calm"

"I just did what I thought was right" Sinon answered with a kind smile "Anyway, we'd better get ready for the meeting. It's supposed to start in about one hour"

I nodded and looked at the «chronometer» again. The meeting would be important, as it would determine the fate of all the remaining «Players», and tell us whether or not the game is clearable or not. Of course, I believed that the game could be completed. After all, I'm living proof of it. But now that I think about it… will my appearance change the flow of the game, making it impossible for it to be completed now?

I decided to not think about it much as I continued the flow of the conversation.

"We still have some time for a snack, let's go have a bite or two" I said happily "Food's on me"

Ever get the feeling that you just made a terrible decision? Well, Argo's creepy smile sort of made me feel that way.

Why do I hate her so much? Well, I guess it's because of… well, no reason whatsoever. It's like I just have to fight with her no matter what. I was like this with a kid from the future, as well. His name was Kijiya, and he was a little devil. Strangely enough, he even had the same auburn hair as Argo. And he even had that slight nasal inflation. Could it be, that he's actually-

"I'm home" Kirito said as he walked through the front door "Man, am I exhausted"

"Welcome home, Kirito" Sinon answered, almost housewife-like, which was slightly creepy

"You were probably out trying to gain some extra «EXP», Ki-bou" Argo spoke up with a smirk

The teenager clad in black sighed as he walked past the spy. There was no use trying to hide any information from her.

"I'm gonna go take a bath. If this game had a body odour function, I must smell terrible right now" Kirito said as he walked towards the bathroom

"Hai~" I said happily "We're going to get some grub, see you in a little bit!"

Kirito waved at us as I turned around, walking past Sinon and Argo. That was when I felt that something was… off. Turning back around, I saw that Sinon and Argo were staring at me as if I had murdered someone, or was about to. I instantly remembered an important fact, something so freakishly important that I could have died then and there, as well.

"Asuna's bathing" I muttered as the other two girls nodded their heads in unison

Well.

Shit.

"KYAA!" Asuna's high-pitched scream broke right past the walls of the house "PERVERT!"

Next thing we knew, Kirito was in a jumbled up heap in front of the bathroom door, his face red and his entire body dripping wet. I sort of feel sorry for him. After all, no one told him that Asuna was bathing. Come to think of it, why didn't she lock the door?

"On second thought" Kirito said in a deadpan tone "Let's go have lunch"

"Aye…" I said, helping him onto his feet

======SINON======

I eyed the bread in my hands carefully as I used the «cream» item to increase the flavour of the originally bland and hard food. Normally, I would have eaten something heavier to fill myself up, but I opted to go with efficiency today. Even in the real world, I didn't eat that much. I was contempt with cooking something simple which was suitable for someone with just enough money for the simpler pleasures of life.

Somewhere nearby, I spied Kiriko and Argo, having another heated debate over nothing in particular as they ate their rather expensive rice set lunches. It seems strange. I have only met Kiriko for more than a month, yet I worry for her like a little sister. Maybe it's just the fact that she has no family members to turn to, or is pretty much on her own. Although, I guess she's fine on her own. Just as long as she doesn't accidentally kill Argo, or vice versa. Honestly, those two are like a pair of dogs fighting over a bone that doesn't even exist.

"Are you okay? You're spacing out"

I looked to my side, and there sat Kirito. He has already eaten, so I guess he just wanted to have some company. I replied his question by telling him that I was fine and started to eat the bread. The meeting was going to start in a little bit, so I guess that was another reason for my lack of an appetite. Eventhough I had invited Asuna, I felt rather nervous myself.

As a «spear» user, I would obviously be sent to fight the smaller spawning enemies, along with my team. Only players who used «shields» would be useful in trying to attack the boss, which both Kirito and Argo told me was «Illfang the Kobold Lord». I tried to ask for some tips from both of them, seeing as they're both «Beta Testers», but they kindly declined. Apparently, even they weren't so sure that this Illfang was going to be the same one they fought back in the «Beta period».

"I'm sort of worried about the boss fight, Kirito" I said honestly "If we fail now, no one else would be willing to finish the fight, and everyone's going to be trapped here"

"You seem more worried about the other people than for yourself, you know" Kirito said as I continued to eat

"Don't get me wrong, I'm scared of dying as well. But… I just want everyone to get out of here as quickly as possible"

"You're really close to Kiriko as well" he added "You're worried about her?"

"I have to take care of my mother, and Kiriko has no place to call home and no one to call a family. So either way, she's currently my responsibility"

Kirito smiled as he continued to survey the surroundings. We had about twenty minutes left till the meeting starts, so I decided to go and discuss a few things with Kiriko and Argo. No use talking with Kirito much. He was a «Solo Player», and despite warming up and teaming up with us, he sometimes likes to act on his own accord. If he needs to do something together, he'll usually be the first to say it.

As I bid farewell to Kirito, I saw Kiriko and Argo were pretty much fighting over their food. For some reason, they were both trying to take whatever they can from their opponent's tray. I sighed loudly. Will these two ever grow up?

"Oi, are you two quite done yet?" I called out to them, making them both look at me

"Pretty much" Kiriko answered as she quickly scooped up all of Argo's food and swallowed it in one fell swoop

"Well, we'd better get going, then" I said, though I couldn't help but smile at their antics "Come on, we're gonna be late"

"Aye, sir!" Kiriko shouted as she got up, followed by a grunt from Argo

We started talking about the many strategies we could use to fight «Illfang the Kobold Lord». Coupled with Argo's knowledge on the Beta, it appears that my guess was true. We would have to fight the smaller spawning enemies that would occasionally appear, «Ruin Kobold Sentinels». Fighting the boss without a shield was considered suicide, literally.

"Still, you're awfully calm about this" Argo said after a few minutes

I wish that was true. I might really seem like this, but inside, I'm panicking like there was no tomorrow. If it wasn't for the fact that I needed to be strong, at least for Kiriko's sake, I would be a shivering mess in an inn somewhere right now. None of them know about how much I can't sleep at night, praying that I could wake up the next day and survive.

I suddenly hit Kiriko, who had stopped in the middle of the road.

"What's wrong, Kiriko?" I asked

She pointed towards the direction where I had just eaten my small lunch. Sure enough, Kirito was there. Beside him, I could see a young girl clad in white clothing talking with him. Kirito seemed to be talking about food, seeing as he suddenly took out his «Jar of Cream» and shared a bit with Asuna. The white swordsman took a bite of the bread before devouring the entire thing almost as fast as Kiriko.

"Looks like those two love birds are having some fun!" Argo teased

"Yeah! Now, we just have to make sure that nothing happens between them, and it'll be all right" Kiriko said a little too cheerfully as she pumped her fists

"Oh, so you _want_ them to be together?" Argo looked at Kiriko with a sneaky gaze

"Um… Sort of?"

Argo's cheeky grin was in full motion as she tried to walk towards the two of them before I quickly grabbed her by the scruff of her cloak's collar. I stared at her with a rather ticked off expression and pulled her away.

"Come on, there's no need to ruin someone else's life in your quarrels"

Kiriko followed closely behind, though she seemed like she wanted to look at my expression. I don't really mind about who Kirito wanted to like, so I at least wanted to save him from being involved in Kiriko and Argo's fights. I wanted to say something to Kiriko, but she suddenly rubbed her head, like she was having a slight headache.

"You okay?" I asked

"Yeah, nothing to worry about" she smiled and continued to walk behind us towards the meeting grounds.

Unbeknownst to us, a conversation had started between the other two members of our party.

"Ne, Kirito-kun" Asuna asked with a distant expression "You seem pretty close to Sinon-san, am I right?"

"Sinon? Well, I guess we're both friends, yeah"

"Just that? Are you sure?" she sounded slightly jealous for some reason

Kirito wasn't really sure how he was supposed to answer that question.

* * *

**A/N Sorry for the long hiatus, and coming back with a filler chapter at that, but I'm sort of... busy right now. You see, living in Malaysia, I have to take this big test called the SPM examination at the end of the year. That, coupled by the fact that I live in a hostel, means that I barely ever get time for computers. So... expect another short hiatus from me.**

**Sumimasen, minna.**


	8. I Start A Drama Scene

**2022. December 2, Tolbana**

As we entered the huge «Meeting Area» that was called the town center, we slowly walked towards a rather darkened spot, hoping to hide our presence as much as possible. Just as Argo had predicted, we were the only female players around. All around us, many male players glanced at our direction with disapproving, and sometimes pitiful glares.

A small hand touched my shoulder, and I turned towards the source; a rather short girl with long, straight hair that reached past her waist. She had this calming grin on her face, one that was always present on her no matter the circumstances. If you asked me, I would say that the only time she wasn't smiling was when she was writhing in agony due to the sudden headaches she sometimes has to torment through.

"What's up?" she asks, always oblivious to her surroundings "It ain't like you to start brooding over nothing. Well, sure, you sometimes do, but you were supposed to be holding both me and Argo by our collars to stop us or something"

That cheerful smile was always on, it pained me to see it like that. The girl with no home, the girl who suffered from intense mental exhaustion, the girl who wouldn't die even when she was killed just because she didn't want to.

"Ne, Kiriko" I finally said after Kiriko kept poking me on the cheek "Why are you always so happy in this game? I mean, it's a death game, right? One wrong move and it'll all be over"

"Eh?"

Poor, clueless Kiriko.

"And I'm sure this has something to do with it, but you always seem most lively when it comes to doing something game-related. Whether it's raiding, level farming, even doing a random quest, you always seem like you finally know what you're doing. Like all this time, you were waiting for something like that to happen. To make you able to play around as much as you want"

As the message was slowly deciphered by the rather slow Kiriko, she giggled extremely un-ladylike and tried to put an arm around my shoulder, only to give up and place it around my waist instead.

"Wow, that's the longest I've ever heard you talk about gaming, Sinon-san!" she made that hearty grin which only an idiot could be so careless to make but could easily melt your heart "But I guess you're right. I love the gaming world. In fact, I don't even exist back there, in the real world. People always saw me as that one annoying kid who kept on ranting about some hard mission she can't finish, or admiring the newest weapon that came out in an MMO. Aside from my parents' friends and their kids, almost nobody ever took the time to want to know me"

Before I could have said something, Kiriko said in an almost inaudible tone

"Not that I care, anyway"

At this point, Argo, who was always the most mysterious and silent (when not trying to kill Kiriko, that is), raised an eyebrow. It was that expression of her wanting to find out something, and she shows it more whenever Kiriko says or does something confusing.

Maybe, just maybe, she does care for the kid.

"Oi, chibi Chihuahua, I thought we made it clear that talking about «the Other Side» was taboo" she then made that same cheesy grin she makes whenever she was ready to pick a fight with Kiriko "Or did you lose enough brain cells to forget about that?"

"Eh, to be honest, I don't give a rat's ass about any sort of «taboo». That's 'cause I don't even consider myself a resident of that world anymore. When you think about it, living here and on the other side aren't that different anyway. In fact, I might say that «Aincrad» is an improvement on what reality lacked.

"Eh?" Argo deadpanned "Indulge us"

Kiriko suddenly beamed, realising that she could actually one-up her lifelong rival. She suddenly let go of my waist and placed her right arm around Argo's neck, making the auburn-haired girl leer in annoyance.

"Well, for starters, we don't have to use a restroom"

Both Argo and I deadpanned at that. On a side note, what _would_ happen if our real bodies wanted to go? I quickly shut that thought away. No, I am not thinking about that here.

"If we train, we could actually see how much we've done and could calculate the exact value of time that we need to use in order to gain enough strength. That being said, being a lazy bastard wouldn't even have any side effects on your body. You still keep your strength and stats. Our body doesn't even go through physical pain, only mental ones.

I stopped myself from yelling at Kiriko right there and then. Who was she to talk about physical pain? All this time, she was the one that underwent all those black outs, all those agonizing hours just screaming and wailing as her body burned to the touch. Still, I held myself back. Right now, Kiriko is living. And I don't want to sadden her any more than she must be feeling inside.

"And tell me, what's so bad about the «death penalty»?" Kiriko said with an honest face

Argo looked at her as if she was insane.

"What's so bad? What's _so bad?!_ Everything, that's what! We could practically die in this world, god damn it! Are you saying that's okay, shrimp? Do you know just how worried are family members are back there? Our friends? Or do you not give a single fuck, princess?!"

Somehow, something inside Kiriko seemed to snap at the mention of family and friends. Her fun loving smirk was slowly wiped off her face and she dropped her hand. I swear that even the colour of her eyes seemed to start to disappear.

"You don't think that I give two fucks about my family?" her voice was loud and clear, but lacked all human emotion "You think I consider this all as some stupid game and I would wake up later and laugh it all up?! Don't you dare talk to me about how my family and friends are feeling right now!"

The ferocity and depression that reverberated through her voice shook me down to the core, even more than I would ever admit.

"Even on the other side, we could always die due to some disease, or accident. We have fragile lives, Argo! Any time now, the «Shinigami» could slice us up and eat our souls without a second glance. But here, we actually have a chance at survival. We could heal ourselves from almost any injury, and the pain is always bearable. So excuse me if I think that living here would be much better to me than going back to that Hell known as the «Real World»"

For the first time, I swear Kiriko just called Argo by her name.

I gently tapped Kiriko's steaming shoulder, still shaking from giving such a rash explanation.

"Everyone else is looking at us, so please… Just, drop it…"

It was true. Every other player had stopped their own activities and was staring at the three of us as if we were a side show to an exhibition. I slowly hid my face behind my hair, which was rather hard. My hair wasn't even that long anyway, unlike Kiriko's or Asuna's. In order to calm myself down, I held on to my «Camlann Spear», feeling ever safer behind its creamy shade.

It wasn't long before I saw Kirito and Asuna appear, casually walking towards our direction. Perhaps I was just over-analysing the situation, but the two of them seem rather tense. No, it has to be nothing. Worst case scenario, they were there to hear Kiriko's outburst and was rather embarrassed to have known such a hair-trigger emotional girl.

As they walked up to us and started to make the preparations for the meeting, I stole a glance at Kiriko. She wasn't smiling as she always did, which sort of pained me. Sure, she always duked it out with Argo, but this time… This time, it felt personal. For a moment, I wondered if she even cared about her real life back on the other side. Speaking of which, what was her real life like?

======KIRIKO======

I guess I was rather rude, but I can't help it. Argo was such a bitch.

Still, it didn't really explain my outburst. Usually, I could keep my cool and didn't degrade myself any lower than I already was. But I repeat, I couldn't really help it.

Back in the real world, I have nothing waiting for me. I was out of my time, and I'm pretty much condemned to always worry about my family and friends, but could do nothing about it, and vice versa. They couldn't reach me, and because of that my family is breaking apart. I wonder how Mama's doing. Last I heard; she was breaking down even more every day.

'_It's all my fault_' I whispered to myself, blinking back the tears.

I never should have pestered Mama and Papa to let me go on this stupid experiment. They should have just sent that dumb cat they wanted to send in the first place. I was just a nuisance after all, right? That's what Kasumi sometimes called me whenever I annoyed her too much with my constant ramblings. It might also be why I could never really get along with Lisbeth's younger twin son, Sasuke, while I enjoyed being with her elder twin son, Yusuke. To Sasuke, I was that one annoying girl who just couldn't leave them alone. Yusuke was always the one to back me up.

No, I can't break down like this! Wiping away most of my tears, I plastered on the biggest fox smile I could make and pretended to wait for the meeting to begin. Out of the corner of my eye, Sinon's worried glance made me feel all the more uncomfortable. I know that she was worried, so I decided to shrug it off for now. Let her see me smile for a while longer.

Oh look, some dude's walking up to the plaza's fountain edge.

"It's starting, guys!" I shouted at the top of my lungs, hoping that my façade would make them forget about what had happened just now.

A man with shoulder length wavy blue hair emerged, waving his arm at everyone. My first guess was that he was a «Beta Tester». Why? Well, years of gaming had easily made me identify who was and who wasn't in the blink of an eye. His proud attitude, not to mention armour and weapon, looked like something a n00b would never be able to attain in just the span of a month. Not to mention the hair. I mean, come on! Even I didn't know where to find hair dye yet!

"O—K! Now then, it's five minutes late, but let's start! Everyone, a bit more to the front... there, come three steps closer!"

I winced at that majestic voice of his. For some reason, it sounded rather… forceful, like he was trying to sound calming and reassuring to everyone. Still, I didn't buy it. I've played VRMMOs for _way_ too long. I know these types of people. In the back of my idiot mind, I knew that he had something up his muscular, non-existent sleeve. I instantly labelled him as dangerous, and could feel my discontent with him rising like a certain pink-haired Yandere who was obsessed over this wimpy kid in an old anime I watched back in the future.

He identified himself as the knight «Diabel» and spoke of how he and his «Party» had found the «Boss Room» that everyone has been searching all over for. After several minutes, I could hear someone miming his voice in a childish manner, probably trying to insult him in some way. I gave a slight chuckle at that, too. Wait, the person chuckled with me too! Looking around, I could see Kirito and Argo looking at me with pitiful expressions.

"You sound like a total airhead" Argo said, and promptly disappeared behind the shadows

Shut it, Jerry.

It was only a few minutes in when the sound of another man could be heard, shouting at Diabel to wait. His loud footsteps resonated around the plaza as he appeared in front of the fountain, glaring at the other players.

"Before that, there is one thing that must be cleared up; otherwise I cannot join you."

He was a man with spiky red hair that seemed to resemble the Pokémon Cacnea, and he smelled like trouble. No really, he did. He had this stench on him, like he had been bathing in the blood of his fallen enemies. Not like I'd know what that would smell like. Anyway, he then started ranting about how he had a badass name («Kibaou», seriously?) and how he wanted… wait, WHAT?!

"Those beta testers, on the day this shitty game started, dashed from the Starting City and disappeared. They left behind over 9000 people who didn't know left from right. They monopolized good hunting grounds and profitable quests, got stronger without a care for those behind. ...There should be some in this group, hiding their beta status, some sly people thinking of joining the boss fight. I want them to kneel down once, to the party members their lives depend on. That's what I want to say!"

I felt… I don't know, annoyed, for some reason. Hell, I ain't a beta tester. But Kirito and Argo were. How dare he insult them in any way?! And even going as far as to insult every beta tester? That's absurd!

Wait a sec, did I just back up Argo?

"And I could easily point out a few of them right now, too!" Kibaou said with another sneer "Isn't that right, player «Kiriko»?"

I stared at him dead in the eye before I felt Kirito's strong hand hold me back. I guess he knew about just how short-tempered I could get, and wasn't about to take any chances. Before I could even open my mouth for a rebuttal, a commanding, clear voice spoke up first.

"And what proof do you have of this, Kibaou-san?" Asuna said, trying her best to back me up

"Proof? Well just looking at her is enough proof!" I'm seriously considering chopping his head off right now "Out of all of us here, she has the highest stats, being one of the first to reach level 15! I know; I was training nearby when she levelled up. And those of you who saw her fight, you could tell that she's well-trained in the arts of «Sword Skills», right? No one would have that amount of skills if they haven't already practised beforehand – In the «Beta»!"

As soon as I felt my future dad's grip loosen I proceeded to charge at the bastard and unleash my fury of a thousand suns.

By kicking him in the balls.

My legs were strong, Kasumi and Himeko always told me that. Even Aunt Lisbeth once told me that I should grow up to be an athlete if I wasn't so malnourished and actually drank more of that poison they called «milk». But then again, this isn't real life. This was all a game. So basically, my special move, the «Ball-Breaker» was stopped short by a «System Message», though the impact was still enough to knock Kibaou back a few steps. Oh, how I wish that I could kick his real world balls right now.

Hey look, I found a weakness in the gaming world.

"You think that I'm a «Beta Tester», seriously?" I said with the wildest expression I could make. My long hair was in a mess when I dashed straight up to him "I just took the fucking effort to get GOOD, and you are bitching at me because you think I'm a Beta Tester? That's just stupid. And dumb. And cowardly"

Kibaou seemed to have wanted to say something else, but I managed to cut him off first.

"How many countless nights did you think I spent, trying to level up so I could help bastards like YOU get out of this game alive? I trained and fought, and even almost got killed by an entire swarm of «Little Nepents». So please, indulge me on how sheer hard work and training to the point of near death makes me a beta tester?"

I would have kept on shouting. Hell, I would have been a «Red Player» right now if it wasn't for a strong hand, way too muscular to be true, touched me on the shoulder. Only one man was this abnormally strong and big.

Big Uncle Agil.

"May I speak?"

"Yeah, knock yourself out"

I then trudged back to my spot at the back of the group. Agil's loud, baritone voice just barely made it past my ears as I heard him help stick up for me, and even talk about the «Guide Book» Argo and Kirito had cooked up together some time back. I ignored it all, and then went to hide in the shadows like Argo, hoping to calm myself down.

I'm a mess. A total mess.

I shouldn't have lashed out at Kibaou like that. After all, I was just as bad as a beta tester. I was a cheater. A hardcore cheater. The only thing that saved me and made me this strong was my past years of gaming, especially in «Brain Burst». I had nothing to my name and I was downright pathetic.

I guess the only thing I actually have now is my gaming skills.

…

Yui-neesan, help me…

======SINON======

Our party looked at Kiriko's lifeless face as she tried to disappear from view, but I guess that people like Kirito who had a high «Searching» skill, would have easily noticed where she was. I managed to release a heavy sigh.

I know that she's broken, and it had something to do about the secret she's kept from me since the day we met. However, I couldn't find it in myself to ask her about it. After all, harbouring a huge secret was something that was hard on yourself. All I know is that it had something to do with her family and friends, and how she can't seem to be able to reach them. Maybe forever. The smile that was evident on her face not less than an hour ago had left Kiriko, and she was in a dire state of depression.

When could we see that 100% smile again, Kiriko?

* * *

**A/N Ossu, minna! It's been a while, aye? I know this chapter isn't really that comedic, but I guess even comedies have to have their dark spots. I have a trial exam in two weeks and I'm pretty much fucked twice over. That being said, I have a two week holiday as well, so I might be able to get another chapter out if I'm procrastinating that bad, and maybe a chapter or two for FB as well. Enjoy!**


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